WHICH SEMEN PARAMETERS HAVE A PREDICTIVE VALUE FOR PREGNANCY IN INFERTILE COUPLES

A prospective study was carried out in 156 couples attending an infert ility clinic. To assess the predictive value of semen parameters in re lation to pregnancy, we defined a group of 16 couples (group II) in wh om the female became pregnant by intra-uterine insemination (IUI), and therefore in whom a female factor could be ruled out. Studies of seme n parameters before and after capacitation were carried out in the fir st trimester of pregnancy (<12 weeks). The same studies were done in t he remaining 140 men (group III) with primary infertility and then all results were compared with a control group of 27 healthy, fertile men (group I), with normal semen parameters. Our results showed that prog ressive motility and straight line velocity were significantly lower i n group III compared with group II: 33.4 and 45.2% respectively (P < 0 .001) for progressive motility, and 25.7 and 32.8% respectively (P < 0 .005) for straight line velocity. Acrosome alterations, on the other h and, were significantly more frequent in group III compared with group II: 21.4 +/- 0.7 and 5.9 +/- 1.7 respectively (P < 0.003). After capa citation, the recovery in terms of numbers of motile spermatozoa, sper matozoa with normal morphology and acrosome-reacted spermatozoa could be a predictive parameter of fertilization, because all were significa ntly decreased in group III compared with group II (P < 0.01).