[A review of WHO Laboratory Manual for the Examination and Processing of Human Semen (5th edition)].

This paper presents a review of the contribution, revision and defects of the 5th edition of WHO Laboratory Manual for the Examination and Processing of Human Semen published in 2010. The pity is that the book lacks the data from China. The normal spermatozoon morphology as 4% seems incredible and hard to be applied in practice. The reference values provided by WHO are important records of past findings, but do not hold good for all time. The Manual cannot be looked upon as a "Bible" but a new starting point. It is an inescapable responsibility of Chinese andrologists to establish a set of criteria for human semen analysis specifically applicable to Chinese males.