The Effect of Incubation Temperature On Semen Parameters Before Intra-Uterine Insemination

Objectives: To evaluate the effect of different incubation temperature between room (26–28˚c) and body (37 ˚c) temperature on percentage of progressive sperm motility and the optimal incubation period before intrauterine insemination. Methods Seventy-one normal semen samples under WHO 2010 criteria were recruited. All semen was prepared with Density Gradient Centrifugation technique (DGC) and divided into two groups to evaluate sperm motility at 60 min of incubation time. First group: prepared semen was incubated in room temperature (26˚-28˚c) and second group: prepared semen was incubated in body temperature (37°c). Moreover, each group is divided into 4 items for compare sperm motility between both groups in same of incubation time and evaluate the optimal incubation time between the items in the same groups. Results Spermatozoa incubated at body temperature had a significantly higher percentage of progressive sperm motility than those incubated at room temperature (89.62 ± 8.02 vs 85.97 ± 9.42; p  < 0.01). The optimal incubation time at room temperature was 30 minutes and at body temperature was 60 minutes. These results suggest that spermatozoa incubated at 37°C for 60 minutes were more likely to have better sperm motility functions for IUI. Conclusion These results suggest that spermatozoa incubated at 37°C for 60 minutes were more likely to be effective for use in IUI in terms of sperm motility functions.