OBJECTIVE: To establish a baseline incidence of chromosomal abnormalities in testicular sperm of fertile men and to determine the best control sample for comparisons with azoospermic males to estimate their reproductive prognosis. DESIGN: Prospective study. SETTING: Infertility clinic. PATIENT(S): Sixteen obstructive azoospermic (OA) and 19 nonobstructive azoospermic patients (NOA). Control samples were ejaculated sperm from ten fertile donors and testicular sperm from ten other fertile donors. INTERVENTION(S): Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in sperm. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Sperm numerical abnormalities for chromosomes 13, 18, 21, X, and Y; ongoing implantation and pregnancy rates in intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles. RESULT(S): In control samples, testicular sperm showed higher incidences of diploidy (0.27% vs. 0.10%) and disomy for chromosomes 13 (0.16% vs. 0.07%), 21 (0.25% vs. 0.12%), and sex chromosomes (0.34% vs. 0.21%) than ejaculated sperm. Comparisons with ejaculated control samples showed 12.5% OA and 68.4% NOA patients having significantly higher incidence of sperm chromosomal abnormalities. Compared with testicular control subjects, fewer OA (6.3%) and NOA (42.1%) patients had chromosomally abnormal sperm. NOA patients had lower ongoing implantation and pregnancy rates than OA patients, particularly those with abnormal FISH compared with testicular control samples. CONCLUSION(S): Sperm FISH analysis using testicular sperm control samples better identifies NOA patients with a lower likelihood of reproductive success.
OBJECTIVE: To establish a baseline incidence of chromosomal abnormalities in testicular sperm of fertile men and to determine the best control sample for comparisons with azoospermic males to estimate their reproductive prognosis. DESIGN: Prospective study. SETTING: Infertility clinic. PATIENT(S): Sixteen obstructive azoospermic (OA) and 19 nonobstructive azoospermic patients (NOA). Control samples were ejaculated sperm from ten fertile donors and testicular sperm from ten other fertile donors. INTERVENTION(S): Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in sperm. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Sperm numerical abnormalities for chromosomes 13, 18, 21, X, and Y; ongoing implantation and pregnancy rates in intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles. RESULT(S): In control samples, testicular sperm showed higher incidences of diploidy (0.27% vs. 0.10%) and disomy for chromosomes 13 (0.16% vs. 0.07%), 21 (0.25% vs. 0.12%), and sex chromosomes (0.34% vs. 0.21%) than ejaculated sperm. Comparisons with ejaculated control samples showed 12.5% OA and 68.4% NOA patients having significantly higher incidence of sperm chromosomal abnormalities. Compared with testicular control subjects, fewer OA (6.3%) and NOA (42.1%) patients had chromosomally abnormal sperm. NOA patients had lower ongoing implantation and pregnancy rates than OA patients, particularly those with abnormal FISH compared with testicular control samples. CONCLUSION(S): Sperm FISH analysis using testicular sperm control samples better identifies NOA patients with a lower likelihood of reproductive success.