A new CentriSwim procedure to increase the recovery of motile spermatozoa

A prospectively controlled in vitro study was performed to compare sperm co ncentration, sperm motility and progressive sperm motility recovered follow ing the standard swim-up procedure and a new CentriSwim procedure. The Cent riSwim procedure involves creating a centrifugal force to counteract the fo rce of gravity during sperm swim-up procedure. Two aliquots of semen from 1 2 normozoospermic ejaculates and 12 laboratory-induced oligoasthenozoosperm ic specimens were diluted, centrifuged, and 1.0 ml of media layered over th e sperm pellet. One aliquant was processed by standard swim-up technique. T he other aliquant was processed by CentriSwim procedure involving centrifug ation at 200 rpm on a 2-cm radius upward-directing arm, at an angle of 60 d egrees for 10 min, creating roughly 0.8 g centrifugal force at room tempera ture (22-24 degreesC) to counteract the force of gravity. The numbers of sp ermatozoa recovered from the upper 0.5 ml of the medium following CentriSwi m from the normozoospermic ejaculates and laboratory-induced oligoasthenozo ospermic specimens were significantly higher than following standard swim-u p procedure. No statistical differences in the recovery of percentage sperm motility and progressive sperm motility between the two techniques were ob served. in conclusion, the CentriSwim procedure yields higher numbers of mo tile spermatozoa than the standard swim-up technique.