Autosomal translocation in an apparently normospermic male as a cause of habitual abortion.

A 22;22 Robertsonian translocation was diagnosed in a husband whose wife had had six consecutive early spontaneous abortions and no normal progeny. With the new multiple-exposure photography (MEP) technique, an accurate, objective and documentary sperm analysis was performed. No abnormality of the essentially defective, genetically unbalanced sperms could be detected in regard to sperm count, motility, velocity and morphology. The only similar translocation previously reported in a male was associated with azoospermia. Recent literature correlating chromosomal aberrations and reproductive failure in the male is discussed in relation to the reported case. The importance of including the male partner in the cytogenetic investigation of couples with habitual abortion is stressed.