Comparison of sperm separation methods: effect on recovery, motility, motion parameters, and hyperactivation

Objective: To compare the Enhance (Percoll; Conception Technologies, San Di ego, CA) and PureSperm (Gen X International, Madison, CT) sperm preparation methods with respect to recovery (percentage of motile sperm), motility (% ), path and progressive velocities (mu m/s), and hyperactivation (%). Design: Comparison of sperm processing methods. Setting: University medical center-based clinical andrology laboratory and infertility program. Patient(s): Twenty-five men who presented for semen analysis. Intervention(s): Each of 25 semen specimens were divided and each aliquot w as prepared using two different density gradient centrifugation methods. Main Outcome Measure(s): The motile sperm recovery, percent motility, motio n parameters, and percent hyperactivation were measured for each semen spec imen (n = 25) before and after separation with the use of the two methods. Result(s): There was no difference in the percent motility and motile count between specimens prepared with Enhance (Percoll) and PureSperm and fresh specimens. Statistically significant differences were found (fresh versus t est) in the velocities and in hyperactivation (PureSperm only), and no diff erences were found between the processing methods. Conclusion(s): PureSperm appears to be as effective as Percoll (Enhance) fo r the recovery of good, progressively motile sperm for use in IUI or other assisted reproductive techniques. (Fertil Steril(R) 1998;70: 1173-5. (C) 19 98 by American Society for reproductive Medicine.).