Background: Male infertility contributes 40 % of infertility worldwide. Prevalence of abnormal semen parameters have been on the increase. Age among other factors affect fertility potential of males.
Objectives: To determine the pattern of seminal fluid parameters of male partners of couple, seeking fertility treatment in Nigeria and to determine the effect of age, volume, and liquefaction time on other semen parameters.
Methods: This is multicentre retrospective study conducted in eight secondary and tertiary hospitals in Nigeria. The case notes of couples that sought fertility care at Gynaecology and Urology clinics of these hospitals from January 1st December 31st 2022 were retrieved. A purpose designed proforma based on WHO manual for examination of human semen was used for data collection. Outcome measures were volume of semen, sperm number, sperm concentration, PH, agglutination, liquefaction, motility, morphology, vitality, and white blood cell count. Data was analysed using SPSS version 23. Means of categorical variables were compared using the Chi-square test whereas continuous variables were analyzed using Student’s t‑test. A value of P ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: Overall, 1063 couples (male partners) were evaluated during the period. The mean age was 38.24±8 years, while the mean semen volume and sperm concentration were 2.62±1.6 mls and 34.32±7.4 million respectively. The age of participants significantly affected motility, volume and morphology (p-values of 0.001, 0.001 and 0.004 respectively). Spearman`s rank correlation revealed significant inverse associations between age and sperm motility.
Conclusion: This study shows that sperm motility decreases with the age of participants. It was also observed that the most common combined abnormality was oligoasthenozoospermia.
