This article is professionally consulted by IVF Specialist. Tran Hue Tran, Reproductive Support Center, Vinmec Times City International General Hospital
The sperm washing method is to select healthy sperm, separate them from semen, and remove dead and deformed sperm for use in infertility treatment techniques such as injecting sperm into the uterus or in vitro fertilization.
1. Why is sperm washing necessary?
In the normal fertilization process, after intercourse, semen will be released into the vagina. Healthy sperm will fertilize the egg; they will swim through the mucus layer in the cervix to enter the woman's genital tract. With healthy sperm and good mobility, they will separate from the semen to continue entering the uterus and go to the fallopian tube to fertilize the egg.
The function of semen is to neutralize and protect sperm from the acidic environment of the vagina; besides, semen also has the task of stabilizing and nourishing sperm. However, semen also has many negative effects on sperm after being released into the vagina of women. Semen contains substances that prevent the activation of the sperm head, preventing the reaction of the sperm head. Many bacteria often reside in semen; besides, semen is also a place that contains many bacteria that cause diseases in the male genital tract.
In semen, there is a substance called prostaglandin; this substance can cause uterine contractions when injected into the uterine cavity. In addition, semen also contains dead cells, immobile sperm, white blood cells, fragments, bacteria, and toxins, which affect sperm quality and the normal physiological process of fertilization. Injecting semen directly into the uterine cavity can cause allergies or anaphylactic shock.
For the above reasons, it is necessary to separate sperm from semen as soon as possible.
2. How long can washed sperm live?
Normal sperm can live in the female reproductive tract and still be able to fertilize the egg for at least 2–4 days.
Washed sperm can live for 24–72 hours, but after 24 hours, the quality of the sperm has decreased significantly.
6–12 hours after ovulation, the sperm has the highest chance of penetrating the ovarian membrane to fertilize.The husband needs to abstain from sex with his wife for 2 to 7 days to collect a semen sample, which will be washed.
Some studies have shown that sperm can live for 5 days in the mucus of the genital tract.
3. Sperm washing methods
There are many methods for sperm washing, but currently, the two most popular methods are the Swim-up method and the Gradient method (concentration scale).
Swim-up method
The medium is placed on top of the semen and incubated in a 37oC incubator. After a while, the sperm escapes the lower semen layer to swim to the open surface of the medium. These sperm will be collected and used for infertility treatment.
This is a simple and easy-to-implement method. Sperm with good mobility increases the conception rate. This method is only applicable to initial sperm samples of relatively good quality because otherwise, the remaining quantity will be very small. After all, not all sperm swim up. During the implementation of this method, some impurities may diffuse into the medium or may be carried by the sperm during the swimming-up process.
Gradient method (concentration scale)
This method is used to separate sperm from semen and cell residue based on the ability to filter through different concentration scales. Motile sperm will concentrate at the bottom of the test tube and will be concentrated in a small volume. This is also a simple and easy method to perform. It can be applied to many sperm samples, including high-viscosity samples, low sperm count samples, weak sperm samples, or many deformed sperm samples, which are often prioritized using this method. This method can remove white blood cells, oxidants, toxins, and bacteria. Sperm obtained by this method has a high rate of normal morphology
Please dial HOTLINE for more information or register for an appointment HERE. Download MyVinmec app to make appointments faster and to manage your bookings easily.
