low sperm count

[klou]

what does this mean? excuse my ignorance ladies. i have been wondering about this for a few months. sometimes after sex i "feel" loads of sperm, and other times very little. we are ttc, and i am thinking maybe sometimes not as much sperm comes out as other times. sorry to be graphic, but can someone help? does this mean low sperm count?

[threebob]

I thought it was the number of sperm contained in a certain amount of fluid. It only takes one after all - so a small amount of semen isn't necessarily a problem if it's full of healthy sperm.

[liath]

The quantity is no indicator of quality IYSWIM!

The testes produce a fairly consistent amount of sperm in evry ejaculate. The fluid bit of the ejaculate is added after the sperm leave the testes - if your DH was a bit dehydrated then the volume could change.

The ONLY way to tell anything about sperm quality/quantity is to have a semen analysis done. Your DH/DP can help improve sperm quality by cutting back on alcohol, wearing loose undies and taking zinc supplements.

HTH. My DH had a dodgy sperm count and we still managed to get pg (eventually).

[monkeytrousers]

my BIL has no sperm but still ejectualtes seminal fluid (apparently)

[Hopecat]

It's absolutely nothing to do with it klou. My DH doesn't produce any sperm naturally at all (pituitary gland problem) but it still felt like plenty when we had sex.

(He's produces sperm temporarily as he's receiving fertility treatment).

How long have you been trying? If you're under 35 but you've been trying for more than a year your GP would probably refer you for basic fertiliy tests including a sperm count.

If you read online most sites say that anything under 20,000,000 is considered sub-fertile, but actually it just means it'll probably take you longer to get PG. Odds on your DP/DH's sperm is fine.

HTH

[Twiglett]

what you're feeling is a mixture of cervical fluid and seminal fluid and has no bearing at all on sperm count

sperm count is a bit of a misnomer and is an amalgamation of 3 figures: numbers, motility and percentage of normal