Je. Grantmyre et al., DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW ALLOPLASTIC SPERMATOCELE DEMONSTRATING SUCCESSFUL SPERM RETRIEVAL IN AN ANIMAL-MODEL, Fertility and sterility, 64(1), 1995, pp. 179-184
Objective: To create an alloplastic spermatocele capable of repeated s
perm aspiration. The alloplastic spermatocele has long been a theoreti
cal solution to infertility for those patients with congenital absence
of the vas deferens or irreversible obstruction of the male reproduct
ive ductal system. Recent studies have suggested that sperm from effer
ent ducts are capable of fertilization. Clinical use of alloplastic sp
ermatoceles for collection of epididymal sperm has resulted in unaccep
tably low pregnancy rates. Improvement in spermatocele function may oc
cur if a microsurgical anastomosis is performed to the epididymis. Des
ign: A newly designed alloplastic spermatocele was implanted in 17 mat
ure male rabbits. The faceplate of the device had a 0.7-mm orifice, al
lowing direct precise microsurgical anastomosis to a specific loop of
the epididymal tubule. Results: Sperm retrieval was possible in 16/17
(94%) animals. Repeated successful aspirations (total of 73) were perf
ormed in all but one animal. The total number of sperm collected per s
permatocele averaged 115 x 10(6) (range 0 to 734 x 10(6)). The sperm m
otility varied widely between animals and specimens, with a maximum av
erage of 21.6% motile sperm/aspirate per animal. All spermatoceles eve
ntually occluded (mean time of occlusion 14 days; range 3 to 30 days).
The prostheses with the attached epididymides were examined histologi
cally. Conclusions: This prototype alloplastic spermatocele allows rep
eated high density sperm retrieval over a short period of time. Low sp
erm motility may be less problematic clinically as new techniques of I
VF become available.