Cryptozoospermia: Causes, Solutions and Natural Treatment

Cryptozoospermia or cryptospermia is a serious alteration in the concentration of sperm and therefore a cause of male infertility. For a man's sperm to be of good quality, it is necessary that he has an adequate number of spermatozoa, with progressive mobility and good morphology. Men with cryptospermia have a minimal concentration of sperm, which makes natural pregnancy almost impossible. However, the African Phytotherapy Center (Mes Plantes) has a natural treatment based on medicinal plants to permanently cure Cryptozoospermia. Click on the image below to discover this natural treatment.

Definition

Cryptozoospermia is defined as a very low amount of sperm in ejaculated semen. In fact, sometimes it is confused with azoospermia, that is, the complete absence of sperm.

Specifically, a man is said to have cryptozoospermia when his sperm concentration is less than 100,000 sperm per milliliter.

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that for a man to have a normal sperm concentration, it must be equal to or greater than 15 million sperm per milliliter.

Cryptozoospermia is a very rare variant of oligozoospermia, which refers to a low concentration of sperm between 100,000 and 15 million sperm per milliliter. In other words, cryptospermia is a severe case of oligospermia because the sperm count is severely compromised.

To obtain a natural pregnancy, in addition to the concentration, it is necessary that the ejaculate has other parameters of good quality, such as mobility and morphology. If this was not the case either, the sperm would also be diagnosed with alterations in asthenozoospermia and teratozoospermia, respectively.

However, in cryptozoospermia, because there are so few sperm in the ejaculate, it is not possible to assess the number of sperm that are moving well or have a normal shape.

Diagnostic

In order to analyze the seminal quality of a man, the most important test in the andrology laboratory is the seminogram, by means of which a macroscopic and microscopic study of ejaculated sperm is carried out. If there is an alteration in seminal parameters, the doctor may indicate other tests, such as a hormonal analysis, a physical exam, and even an ultrasound, to provide more information and help find the cause of the. infertility.

Sperm count

To assess sperm concentration, it is necessary to observe the seminal sample under a microscope using a counting chamber. This is a support with a grid that facilitates the counting of sperm.

There are two main types of chambers for counting sperm:

Makler's room
It measures the amount in the order of millions of sperm per milliliter, so in case of cryptozoospermia, it does not make sense to use it.
Neubauer's room
It makes it possible to measure with precision values ​​of the order of 10,000 spermatozoa per milliliter.
In the case of a man with cryptozoospermia, it is possible not to find sperm by placing a drop of ejaculate under the microscope or to observe very little.

If this happens, the sperm is concentrated by centrifugation to remove seminal plasma and sperm left at the bottom of the tube (this is called the precipitate). The sample is then taken directly from the bottom of the tube and examined again under the microscope.

About 30% of seminal samples that are initially diagnosed with azoospermia present with sperm after concentration with this technique.

Hormonal analysis

There are two hormones that have a great influence on male fertility. It is therefore interesting to measure its value to find out whether there is proper functioning of spermatogenesis (formation of spermatozoa) in the testes or, on the other hand if there is a modification.

These hormones are FSH, secreted by the pituitary gland to regulate sperm production, and inhibin B, secreted by the testes when sperm are formed.

The values ​​of these hormones can be interpreted as follows:

Normal values ​​of FSH and inhibin B
This means that there are no problems with the formation of sperm and therefore cryptospermia is obstructive.
High FSH and low inhibin B
spermatogenesis are compromised due to a testicular problem. This would be the case with secretory cryptozoospermia.
Low FSH inhibin B
the alteration in sperm production is located in the pituitary gland. It is also a secretory cryptozoospermia.
Depending on the type of cryptozoospermia, it will be necessary to apply one treatment or another to try to increase the number of sperm in the ejaculated semen.

The causes

It is a little difficult to know exactly what causes cryptozoospermia because in most cases a man does not know he has it until the time he is trying to have children.

However, we will break down the different possible causes as follows:

Pre-testicular causes
these are the ones that affect the hormonal regulation of spermatogenesis. For example, diseases such as hypogonadism or unhealthy lifestyle habits (tobacco, alcohol, toxic products for the environment, etc.).
Testicular causes
these are the ones that directly affect the testis, such as cryptorchidism, hydrocele, genital trauma, or varicocele, among others.
Post-testicular causes
they are responsible for obstructive cryptozoospermia because they prevent sperm from coming out. This is the obstruction of the vas deferens, their absence, vasectomy, or inflammation of the urethra.

Depending on the severity of these causes, humans can suffer from oligozoospermia, cryptozoospermia or azoospermia.

Treatment

The possible solutions to cure cryptozoospermia will first depend on the specific cause that is causing it.

First, if a hormonal disorder affecting sperm production is diagnosed, hormone therapy may be applied to stimulate the testes. On the other hand, if the man has a testicular pathology such as varicocele, it is very likely that fertility will be restored after surgery. Natural treatments have a great effect on a cryptozoospermia situation. However, men with sperm quality issues are still advised to maintain a healthy lifestyle, eat foods rich in antioxidant vitamins, etc. Andean maca is a typical Peruvian spinal bulb used as a natural treatment for infertile men due to its multiple properties. However, its effectiveness is proven and allows men with cryptozoospermia to achieve a natural pregnancy.

Cryptozoospermia and natural pregnancy?

Men with cryptozoospermia who have been trying for a while to have a baby will have a hard time doing this naturally with their partner due to the critical sperm concentration. However, as long as there is live sperm in the semen, it is possible to get there even though it is very unlikely.

For couples who wish to have a child in this situation, it is preferable to resort to assisted reproduction. More precisely, the technique of in vitro fertilization (IVF) with an intracytoplasmic injection of sperm, better known under the name of ICSI, would be the most appropriate treatment.

With ICSI, the number of viable sperm needed should be equal to or greater than the number of eggs obtained during the puncture. However, it is preferable to have a little more sperm in order to select the ones with the best morphology and mobility before the micro-injection.

One problem that can occur with ICSI during treatment is that the sperm supplied has degraded and there are no sperm present at that precise moment.

In this case, there are two possible solutions for the couple to choose:

Vitrify the eggs
In order not to lose the stimulation cycle performed by the woman during IVF, her eggs are cryopreserved until it is possible to obtain the sperm.
Biopsy or testicular puncture
Sperm are taken directly from the testis using a testicular biopsy, called TESE (Testicular Sperm Extraction)
To avoid this, it is recommended that men with cryptozoospermia freeze several semen samples before starting IVF treatment. In this way, it will be possible to resort to frozen sperm if it is impossible to obtain it fresh on the day of the follicular puncture.

In all cases, ICSI is the reproductive technique of choice for patients with cryptozoospermia.