Sperm Concentration 4 million

[Sweetie13]

Hi All,

My OH and I have been TTC baby no. 2 for a year (having conceived number 1 in first cycle - what a miracle!). His sperm tests have come back with:

Volume 4.6

Sperm concentration 4 million

Total motility 71%

Progressive motility 64%

Morphology 2%

The doctor said the concentration is critically low. He's been taking Wild Nutrition Fertility for Men for the last couple of months and has started Ubiquinol this week.

Has anyone managed to improve such low results and do you have ny tips? Thank you in advance!

Hi @Sweetie13 , we are on a similar boat. Conceived our first naturally without much effort. Have been trying for #2 for 2 years and recently found out my DH's concentration was 3 million. They recommended IVF with ICSI (which we haven't started yet) and he had an ultrasound which found a small varicocele. Since then he's started taking Fertilisan m and Impryl but no idea if they have helped because we haven't had another semen analysis. We generally eat pretty healthy and don't drink ( and he doesn't take baths) so not sure what else we can do. Sorry, this response is not very helpful, but just wanted to say I feel your frustration!

Hi @Ecdysiast thank you so much for your message and I'm so sorry to hear you're going through the same. Did they do anything to treat the varicocele and do they think that's the cause?

My OH has had hormone blood tests this week and is seeing a urologist on Monday so will see if they can figure out what is happening and hopefully treat it..

I suspect we will also be going down the IVF with ICSI route though my OH I think wants to try and improve things and then try naturally if the levels come up.

Fingers crossed for us both xx

Hi, sorry to hear you’re going through this. We went through similar in 2019 when my husband was told he had very low sperm count (less than 3 million). We had further tests in June 2022 which came back with the same result, were told we needed IVF with ICSI and we were advised he should take Impryl. After taking it for 6 months, on the day of egg collection his count was 21 million. He hadn’t changed anything else so we put it down to Impryl - definitely worth a try as I’m pretty sure that it worked well for us :)

@Immysmumma thank you so much for your message and I'm so glad the Impryl was able to turn things around so dramatically for your OH - will order it 😊

Hi @Sweetie13 In our case, I think they can't really be certain whether the varicocele is the cause (since we don't know whether it's something new or something he's had for a long time). But I have read that varicoceles are the cause in 80% of cases of secondary infertility. I think surgery sometimes helps, but apparently the recovery time post surgery is 4-6 months, and I'm 41 so we don't really have time to wait.
How was the appointment with the urologist? What did they say/recommend?

@Ecdysiast Thanks for this and that makes so much sense. Urologist went well, physical examination showed the left testicle is small and they queried if there's a cyst. They took blood to check hormones and he's got an ultrasound booked in. He has a repeat sperm test in a couple of weeks and if still poor they'll look again testing DNA fragmentation too. I guess they need the full picture before they can give any kind of diagnosis. When do you think you'll start IVF?

Hi @Sweetie13 May I ask what they said was the significance of the cyst? My OH has epididymal cysts but we were told they’re common and don’t impact fertility. Thanks!

Hi @Anonbaby they said much the same that you can try and remove/drain but can quite often leave them alone. I think the ultrasound is to exclude the possibility of a varicocele and see if they can physically see why the left testicle is so much smaller than the right. I think they're covering all bases looking for a hormonal or physical cause of the low sperm concentration and morphology. My OH also has a bit of pain on the left side too.

Hi op, me and my DH are in a similar position. His ultrasound didn't reveal anything but a few cysts which apparently aren't contributing. He also has one smaller testicle and the blood test results showed his hormone levels are low so he's been prescribed with Clomid which will hopefully assist to increase his sperm count. We won't know for another 3 months if it's worked or not but will update! Fingers crossed for all of us x

Hi @e11even thank you for your message and sorry to hear you're in a similar boat, rubbish isn't it?! Glad that your OH is on Clomid and everything crossed for you that it does the trick. Are you thinking to keep trying naturally?

@Sweetie13 thank you and you too! Yes we're still trying in the meantime. He has only had the one semen analysis though which is playing on my mind a bit and now thinking he should do a second one in the meantime as well

Hi @e11even hope you're well. I wondered if your DH had seen improvement with the clomid?

For us frustratingly, the sperm results this week are even worse despite 3 months of Proxeed, ubiquinol, omega 3 and extra vitamin d. :-(

Sperm concentration 3 million

Morphology 1.5%

Progressive motility 45%

My DH has also no drunk alcohol since mid-May and has been running and eating healthier so we both feel quite disheartened by the latest results.

Does anyone have any ideas if these supplements could have had an adverse effect and if you saw improvement which supplements did your OH take?

I've booked an appointment with my fertility doctor in a couple of weeks to see if she thinks we should just go ahead with IVF with ICSI now given my low amh and age (will be 38 in a couple of months). Ugh, this stuff is so hard😔

Hi @Sweetie13 I’m sorry to hear that, it’s so difficult isn’t it. What did his blood and hormones tests reveal?

My DH had only slight improvements to his concentration ☹️ but pretty decent changes to his motility so there's a plus there!

Concentration 5 million
Total sperm 11.5 million
Motility 62%
Morphology 2%

He has also been taking Proxeed Plus and omega 3. He increased how much fruit, veg and nuts he eats. He cut down on alcohol and goes to the gym regularly but he’s still slightly overweight so he’s working on losing weight before testing again.

Like you, I have booked appointments (but via NHS this time) to see if IVF is our only option. It’s really really tough but I’m trying to remain hopeful

Hi @e11even sorry I thought I had replied! 🤦‍♀️

His hormone results were normal from the private consultant though testosterone from the GP was slightly low.

I'm glad to hear your DH's motility has improved and fingers crossed for you that he keeps seeing improvements.

Interestingly I read that high antioxidants can actually have the opposite effect on sperm sometimes, so wondering if that's what's happened for my DH. He's now switched from Proxeed to Impryl, omega 3s and vitamin d so we will see if that does anything.

Seeing the fertility consultant on Wednesday, so will see what she says.. so hard to know if we should wait to try and see if the impryl has a positive impact before starting ivf with icsi, hoping she has all the answers!!

Hope all goes well for you and your DH 🙏

Hi OP, in a similar situation and would love to hear how you are getting on! Xx

Hi @OneHeapedTeaspoonOfSugar sorry to hear and hope you're doing ok. I am very happy to say that the switch to Impryl, omega 3s and vit d for my OH seemed to do the trick for us as we conceived naturally a couple of months later when we were due to start IVF! My miraculous 12 week old is in front of me 🥲

That’s amazing, congratulations I am so pleased to hear that! My husband has been taking proxeed plus but I’m wondering whether we should switch to impryl as I have heard really good things about them! How long did he take it for? And did you have a repeat SA to check? Xx

@OneHeapedTeaspoonOfSugar thank you so much 😊 How long has your husband been taking the proxeed? I was sceptical about switching to Impryl initially but it really seems to have worked - my OH was taking it for just under 3 months before we conceived which I think is roughly when you'd expect to see changes? We didn't retest the sperm before conceiving as ivf was due to begin (with icsi so figuredthey would have been able to select the good ones) . It took us 21 months of ttc naturallt to conceive this time so really do credit the Impryl for being the extra something we needed.

He was taking proxeed plus from April to July and then switched to proxeed men from July to now. He’s also taking omega 3, vitamin 3, pycnogenol, coq10!! He has had 3 SAs done:

April 2024 - sperm concentration of 10 mil but normal overall count, with 0.5% normal forms

July 2024 (beginning) - sperm concentration of 20 mil and counts good BUT 0% normal forms

End of July 2024 had one done privately (above were NHS) which showed a sperm concentration of 8 mil and overall count 30mil

he’s been investigated by a urologist, has a tiny varicocele that they don’t think is causing the abnormalities. We have done everything, cut out caffeine, exercise, loose shorts etc. The urologist is doing another SA on him in November, BUT our plan is to start IVF with ICSI in the new year so it’s hard to know if making to switch is worth it?

We had one chemical pregnancy in cycle 4, currently coming up to a year now and although that’s pretty normal I think that ICSi in the new year is the right decision for us BUT obviously if we could conceive naturally in that time, would be ideal.

I’m so reassured to hear your story though! Just making that switch is the challenge! What was your hubby taking before? Just wild fertility nutrition?

Sorry for the rant and overload of information!!!! Just getting it all down 🤯 xx

So sorry to hear about your chemical, I had one at the start of last year and it was so tough. Not ranting or overloading at all, it is so hard.

So initially he was taking wild nutrition fertility and then switched to Proxeed, ubiquinol, omega 3 and extra vitamin d and the next sperm results were even worse so he stopped proxeed and ubiquinol as we read that sometimes high antioxidants can have a negative effect on sperm and he started the impryl (continuing the omega 3 and vit d). From the beginning he did the lifestyle changes too of better diet, less caffeine and no alcohol. I was taking Wild Nutrition fertility (for women) and I'd also been having acupuncture since my chemical to optimise my cycles and help relieve stress. It's such a minefield isn't it. Really hope this is helpful in some way 😊

Oh that’s so interesting, and how long apart were the two samples? 3 months? We can’t quite make sense of why his samples don’t seem to be improving, so maybe it is worth us making the switch for the next cycle. It sort of feels like going back to square one as he’s been on proxeed for so long but if there’s a chance it could do the trick then it’s well worth it!

I’m just so impatient too 😂

Do you have any advice on how to manage the pressure of it all? Xx

@OneHeapedTeaspoonOfSugar Yes the samples were 3 months apart and we were so sad that all his efforts seemed to have had the opposite effect.

I would definitely recommend making the switch to Impryl if you can - totally get how you feel but it might just be the key like it was for us and worth a go?

In terms of how to handle the pressure - so difficult I know, but anything that helps you both to relax is great. Yoga, meditation, acupuncture, getting a massage etc. My Acupuncturist basically said the body needs to be so relaxed in order to conceive - when stressed the body doesn't prioritise things like fertility apparently and she was keen for me not to obsess about it (pretty difficult advice to follow!!), to optimise things from my side too. Trying to plan lovely things to look forward to - spa day, weekend away etc also helped. When we conceived it was a month I didn't actually track ovulation with tests (though had an inkling based on other signs), partly because IVF was looming on the next cycle so maybe there was something in chilling out/ not focussing too much on it which helped? My Acupuncturist said that several of her patients had conceived on impryl and recommended my OH start it and I'm glad we made that change.

Really feel for you and remember that impatience so well 💛

Yeah I agree, would be better for him and also he’ll still be getting all the nutrients he needs! Honestly think we might do it, so massive thanks for replying to this thread so far along the way! I’m so pleased that you got your little rainbow miracle, maybe our fretting will make it all worth for us one day too 🩵

No worries at all, and thank you so much 😊. Huge goodluck to you @OneHeapedTeaspoonOfSugar , have everything crossed for you 💛 please let us know how you get on and feel free to ask anything else if I can help xx