Services Provided
All products will be
processed through our sister company,
ZDL, Inc.
Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) is a
medical procedure which allows embryos to be
tested for gender-related genetic conditions,
prior to being placed in the womb, giving the
best opportunity to select the gender of your
baby, or screen for genetic defects
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Our experts can review your
semen analysis results, and give you a "second
opinion" on whether or not you should continue
your current course of fertility treatment. When
thousands of dollars are at risk, it is always
best to get as many of the facts as possible.
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Anyone who is having trouble conceiving should
have a semen analysis done. In about 40% of
infertile couples, the cause of the infertility
lies with the males, and this could easily and
quickly be diagnosed via a semen analysis.
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The Express
Home Male Fertility Evaluation is performed
using state-of-the-art, computer-assisted semen
analysis (CASA) technology, and is cross
referenced by our experts who have 25 years of
experience in andrology, in order to ensure
proper quality control.
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Since all semen is different, and there is a
chance that a particular type will not survive
the chilling process used for BioTranz overnight
transport, we have developed a system where a
"dry run" can be done.With this procedure, the
semen is shipped to us and we will do an
analysis of it.
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Normal sperm morphology has been shown to be
predictive of IVF outcome/success. The AIA
evaluates normal sperm morphology using either
or both WHO standards and also strict criteria
methodologies. The strict criteria is based on
the shape and appearance of post-coital sperm
found in the internal os. Basically, the sperm
should have a smooth oval head, with no defects
in the neck or tail regions. The percentage of
normal sperm assessed using this method has been
shown to correlate with other sperm functions
such as sperm motility, binding to the egg
investments and subsequent fertilization (3,4).
Normal values should be greater than 14% normal
sperm.
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Semen preparation or reconstitution techniques
are used in assisted reproduction and IUI to
separate sperm, which have a normal appearance
and move spontaneously, from the fluid portion
of the semen in which the sperm are suspended.
It is known that white blood cells, bacteria and
dead sperm in semen can produce oxygen radicals
that can impair fertilization of the egg.
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The
same applies as in the case of sperm preparation
done with IUI except in this case the sperm that
is used is frozen-thawed and is coming from a
semen donation program.
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In
order for fertilization to occur, high quality,
motile spermatozoa need to be separated from the
seminal specimen. Since there is great diversity
in semen profiles, especially among infertile
men, here at AIA, each specimen undergoes a
special "tailor-made" procedure to isolate the
best sperm for ART and IUI. For this purpose, we
have developed numerous innovative techniques
depending on the quality of the specimen. Among
these are the SpermPrep I and II columns, the
ZSC I, ZSC-II and Multi-ZSC technologies, all
developed by our very own Research and
Development Program at AIA (5,6,7). For more
information on these products, please visit
www.zdlinc.com
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The
procedure we use at the Andrology Institute of
America is the sedimentation method. This
procedure is similarly used for both the male
and female selection and takes approximately
2hrs to process. On average, it takes 3-4 cycles
to achieve a pregnancy with the sex selection
technique. Our success rate is approximately 80%
for the male selection and 72% for the female
selection. This is not a guaranteed procedure,
but it will increase your chances for a specific
sex of a child. Gender selection does not damage
or alter the sperm in any way, therefore, it
will not affect the chances for abnormality to
the fetus or the establishment of pregnancy.
See
Also:
Home Gender Selection Packages
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The
duration of sperm motility and overall physical
activity is also an important indicator of sperm
function and vitality. This is tested to ensure
that sperm do not "die off" after a certain
period of time.
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HOS-test is used to test the integrity of the
sperm cell membrane using the principle of
osmotic differences. When normal sperm are
placed in a hypoosmotic solution, water moves
across the cell membrane into the sperm cell
causing it to swell. If the membrane is damaged,
then this transport of water will not occur and
no swelling will take place. Thus, the
percentage of swollen spermatozoa is the measure
of intact membranes and hence sperm viability
and fecundity (8,9).
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These are antibodies produced by the immune
system that mistake sperm for invading
substances and begin to attack them. The
presence of anti-sperm antibodies has been shown
to cause immobilization and agglutination of
sperm, thereby preventing sperm from reaching
the oocyte (10). Anti-sperm antibodies can be
detected in serum, seminal plasma, cervical
mucus and other reproductive tract fluids
(tubal, follicular, uterine). It is estimated
that 5-10% of male infertility is caused by
antisperm antibodies and 10-15% of women with
unexplained infertility have circulating sperm
antibodies in their system.
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Retrograde ejaculation refers to the movement of
seminal fluid backwards (retrograde) into the
bladder instead of forward (antegrade) through
the urethra during ejaculation. This is caused
by the inability of the bladder neck to close
tightly enough during ejaculation. In men with
retrograde ejaculation, the post-orgasm urine
can be collected and assessed for the presence
of sperm. If sperm are present, the high-quality
sperm can be isolated and, if adequate, can be
used for ART procedures (11,12,13), as well as
IUI, with great success.
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Round spermatids are immature sperm cells which
can be used for injection directly into the
oocyte via ICSI. Usually this is the method of
choice when there are no sperm present in the
testis or epididymis. We offer a Hyper-osmotic
Shrinkage Test (HYOS-test), that we developed at
AIA, to identify and select round spermatids
with intact membranes, for microinjection via
ICSI (14).
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References
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Zarmakoupis-Zavos, P.N., Correa, J.R.,
Zarmakoupis,C.N., Zavos, P.M.: Multiple
ejaculate collection via the use of a
seminal collection device at intercourse vs
masturbation. Middle East Fertility
Society Journal, 3(3):1-5, 1998.
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Zavos, P.M.: Parameters and
improvements in ejaculates collected at
intercourse and the use of a silastic
seminal collection device vs masturbation.
Infertility, 9(1):57-64, 1986.
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Kruger, T.F., Menkveld, R., Stander, F.S.H.,
Lombard, C.J., van der Merwe, J.P., van Zyl,
J.A., Smith, K: Sperm morphologic features
as a prognostic factor in in vitro
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Kaskar, K., Franken, D.R., Van der Horst,
G., Oehninger, S.C., Kruger, T.F., Hodgen,
G.D.: The relationship between morphology,
quantitative motility and zona pellucida
binding potential of spermatozoa in human
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Zavos, P.M., Sofikitis, N., Toda, T. and
Miyagawa, I.: Selection and preparation of
human spermatozoa for artificial
insemination using the new and improved
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Zavos, P.M.: Preparation of human
frozen-thawed specimens using the SpermPrep™
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Zarmakoupis-Zavos, P.N., Zavos, P.M.:Can the
method of sperm preparation for intrauterine
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rates? Comparisons between the SpermPrepTM
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Toda, T., Sofikitis, N., Miyagawa, I.,
Zavos, P.M., Harada, T., Mio, Y. and
Terakawa, N.: Hypoosmotic swelling
test / acrosin activity assay: Identifying
subpopulations of idiopathic infertile men.
Molecular Andrology. 4:147-148, 1992.
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Sofikitis, N., Miyagawa, I. and Zavos, P.M.:
Capacitation/acrosome reaction and outcome
of hypoosmotic swelling test in human sperm.
Molecular Andrology. 4:363-368, 1992.
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Zavos, P.M., Correa, J.R.,
Zarmakoupis-Zavos, P.N.: Antisperm antibody
treatment mode: levels of antisperm
antibodies following incubation in TEST-Yolk
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method. Fertility and Sterility,
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Zavos, P.M. and Wilson, E.A.:
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method. Fertil. Steril.,
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Zavos, P.M. and Wilson, E. A.:
Retrograde ejaculation: A new
technique for collection and reconstitution
of retrograde ejaculate. Infertility,
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Kofinas, G.D. and Zavos, P.M.: Retrograde
ejaculation: preparation of spermatozoa for
insemination from retrograde ejaculates
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Zavos, P.M., Barnes, F.L., Correa, J.R.,
Zarmakoupis-Zavos, P.N., Tesarik, J.:
Methods for isolation and purification of
post-ejaculate human round spermatids for
possible use in intracytoplasmic round
spermatid injection. Middle East Fertility
Society Journal. 2:147-150, 1997.
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Zavos PM, Correa JR, ClarkW,
Zarmakoupis-Zavos PN (1998): Sperm viability
in human semen specimens cryostored at 5°C
using the BioTranz container system for
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31: 249-253.
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