Peritoneal fluid from women with moderate or severe endometriosis inhibits sperm motility: the role of seminal fluid components

Oral E, Engin Oral, E Oral, A Arici, Aydın Arıcı, Arici A, David L. Olive, D L Olive, Olive DL, Huszar G, G Huszar, Gábor Huszár
Fertility and sterility · 1996 · vol. 66(5) , pp. 787–792 · doi:10.1016/s0015-0282(16)58637-3 · PMID:8893686 · W2398817706
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Peritoneal fluid from women with moderate or severe endometriosis significantly inhibited sperm motility and velocity, with seminal fluid components playing a role in this effect.

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Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To examine the mechanism of sperm motility inhibition by peritoneal fluid (PF) from women with endometriosis. DESIGN: Prospective, randomized study. SETTING: University-based andrology laboratory. PATIENTS: Women with and without endometriosis. INTERVENTIONS: Fresh semen or Percoll-purified sperm fractions were combined with PF from women with endometriosis (n = 20), from fertile women without endometriosis (n = 10), or with physiological saline. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Sperm motility parameters were determined with computer assisted semen analysis. Data were evaluated by the analysis of variance and the Student's t-test. RESULTS: Peritoneal fluid from women with minimal or mild endometriosis did not inhibit sperm motility in semen. Peritoneal fluid from women with moderate or severe endometriosis caused approximately 40%, 50%, and 80% declines in sperm motility and in percent progressive motile sperm after 4,7, and 24 hours, respectively. Sperm velocity was inhibited by approximately 30% and 60% after 7 and 24 hours, respectively. However, in the Percoll-purified sperm fractions the same PF did not inhibit sperm motility within the 4- to 7-hour time frame, and only a 17% to 42% inhibition occurred after the overnight incubation. Sperm velocity was not affected. CONCLUSION: Cellular components of seminal fluid appear to mediate the inhibitory action of PF. Assuming that the leukocyte components of semen and PF are common, the cell-mediated inhibition of sperm motility is a likely contributor to endometriosis related infertility.

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Condition tags

endometriosisinfertility

MeSH descriptors

Ascitic Fluid Endometriosis Semen Sperm Motility Sperm Motility Adult Adult Ascitic Fluid Ascitic Fluid Endometriosis Endometriosis Female Female Humans Humans Infertility, Female Infertility, Female Infertility, Female Kinetics Kinetics

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