Low sperm count is curable.
Low sperm count curable with treatment – Dr. Gabriel Ogah and a fertility expert, Dr. Mojisola Aderonmu.
Fertility experts have urged men battling low sperm count to seek proper medical intervention, noting that the condition is curable with appropriate medical treatment. The experts, however, noted that the treatment of the condition depends on the underlying cause, stressing that unknown to many people, most cases of low sperm count usually have an underlying cause.
What is low sperm count?
For a man to have normal semen, the World Health Organization’s criteria state that such a man must produce 15 million spermatozoa per millimeter of ejaculated volume or 39 million in the entire sample.Speaking with PUNCH HealthWise, the experts, Consultant Urologist Dr. Gabriel Ogah and a fertility expert, Dr. Mojisola Aderonmu, noted that men suffering from low sperm count may not even be aware until they are tested.
Prevalence:
Also, a study titled Prevalence of low sperm count and abnormal semen parameters in male partners of women consulting at a private fertility clinic in Abakaliki, Eastern Nigeria, found that 70 percent out of the study population of 170 had low sperm count with significant high defective parameters (64 percent). The research led by Emmanuel Ugwuja found that asthenozoospermia (reduced sperm motility) and teratozoospermia (abnormal sperm morphology) were the major abnormal parameters recorded.A higher prevalence of oligospermia (low sperm count) was found in civil servants, and oligospermia semen (38) was associated with a bacterial infection.
The site further explained that a varicocele may cause poor development of a testicle, low sperm production, or other problems that may lead to infertility. Dr. Ogah also stated that other factors that could cause low sperm count include “toxins found in the environment and residues of pesticides found in food.” He also noted that long-distance drivers exposed to heat around their waist area are at risk of low sperm count.
This position of Dr. Ogah is supported by an article published in the African Journal of Reproductive Health by Sunny Abarikwu.
The article stated that “the level of infertility in Africa is due largely to reproductive tract infections, which may be associated with abnormal semen parameters and low sperm count. “In about 60 percent of all couples experiencing infertility, a male factor is responsible in about 40 percent. The male factor is associated with a greater percentage of cases of primary rather than secondary infertility.” Dr. Ogah, however, noted that “in addition to all these factors, advancement in age could also be a factor for the development of low sperm count.” He, nevertheless, stressed that low sperm count can be treated if the underlying cause is properly identified and addressed. Also speaking with PUNCH HealthWise, Dr. Aderonmu, an IVF expert, added that obesity, the misuse or abuse of alcohol, and smoking of cigarettes, such as shisha, can cause low sperm count. Dr. Aderounmu also noted that medical problems like cancers could equally cause low sperm count in men.
Treatment:
On the treatment for the condition, she explained that managing low sperm count depends on what is causing it. “Usually, the men will need to do further tests of their hormones, scans of the private parts, and in some instances, a biopsy of the testes to look microscopically at the portions of the testes that produce the sperm. “The treatment options include medications, which may be supplements or hormones. Use of donor sperm is another option,” she said. Speaking on the length of treatment for the condition, Aderonmu stressed that the length of time taken to manage a man’s sperm count to optimize chances of fertility depends on the underlying cause, what corrective measures are being deployed, and how the man’s body responds to those measures. To prevent low sperm count,
