Infertility is a general term for a large category of diseases, and many patients have different specific diseases. Some female patients have problems with the fallopian tubes or uterus, while some male friends have problems with the vas deferens or semen, and sperm cannot move normally. And there are also some relatively uncommon diseases that are caused by autoimmunity, which are anti sperm antibodies. Anti sperm antibodies, as the name suggests, are secreted by the human immune system specifically to combat sperm. But many people think that this disease only affects women, but in reality, men also suffer from this disease! So, is it still possible for a woman to conceive when male anti sperm antibodies are positive? Can I become an IVF if I suffer from this disease?

1、 Etiology of male anti sperm antibody positivity

Currently, 5-10% of infertile men do indeed have sperm agglutination antibodies and sperm fixation antibodies in their blood and seminal plasma. When serum and seminal plasma containing anti sperm antibodies are mixed with normal sperm, the sperm will come together head to tail or gather together, or in the presence of complement, the serum and seminal plasma can cause swimming sperm to stop moving or tremble in place. The higher the titer of anti sperm antibodies, the more severe the phenomenon of sperm agglutination and cessation of movement. Anti sperm antibodies are often caused by diseases, such as reproductive tract inflammation or other blockage, leading to sperm derailment and overflow, which may cause sperm antigens to come into contact with the body's immune system and produce anti sperm antibodies, causing sperm to agglutinate, fix, lose their vitality, and have difficulty binding to the egg, leading to infertility.

2、 Can male anti sperm antibodies be positive for conception?

The appearance and increased titer of anti sperm antibodies can lead to infertility in both men and women. Therefore, the detection of anti sperm antibodies can be an important indicator for clinical treatment and prognosis judgment of infertility patients. Positive anti sperm antibodies can affect pregnancy! Semen is composed of sperm and seminal plasma, among which more than 30 antigens have been discovered. Under normal circumstances, sperm and seminal plasma are isolated from the autoimmune system through the blood-testis barrier and do not produce antibodies. However, under pathological conditions, semen can serve as an antigen, which causes the body to produce antibodies and antigen antibody reactions. The result of human autoimmune response, on the one hand, is that cellular immunity leads to orchitis and azoospermia or oligospermia. On the other hand, sperm agglutination and sperm fixation antibodies are produced and distributed in plasma and seminal plasma, reducing sperm survival and vitality, greatly reducing semen quality, inhibiting sperm adhesion and penetrating the zona pellucida of the egg, and preventing sperm egg binding. In addition, anti sperm antibodies can act on embryos, causing them to absorb or cause miscarriage, and interfere with the fertilization process in multiple ways, leading to infertility.

3、 Can male sperm antibodies be used for in vitro fertilization?

Patients with positive anti sperm antibodies do not need to worry too much. Although the probability of natural conception is low, human assisted technology can be used. However, the specific use of artificial insemination or IVF treatment depends on the specific situation. If the antibody ratio is higher than 30%, it is generally recommended to try artificial insemination several times first. If it fails multiple times, it can be changed to in vitro fertilization. If the anti sperm antibody is greater than 50%, it is directly recommended to use in vitro fertilization. In vitro fertilization (IVF) involves removing sperm and eggs, combining them with in vitro fertilization, and then transferring the embryo directly into the female uterus. Therefore, positive anti sperm antibodies do not affect in vitro fertilization. If the anti sperm antibody is greater than 80%, the fertilization rate of the egg will greatly decrease. Therefore, it is necessary to use second-generation in vitro fertilization technology for single sperm injection to achieve successful pregnancy.

Anti sperm antibodies, as a serious immune infertility disease, have a significant impact on male friends. If proper treatment is not applied, sperm will lose their normal mobility function both in vitro and in vivo, and even 100% sperm will be unable to move, making natural reproduction completely impossible. So when anti sperm antibodies appear, it is recommended to go to a hospital for treatment. If the hospital is also difficult to treat, it is recommended to choose to use single sperm injection as soon as possible for in vitro fertilization to avoid the adverse factors of sperm motility!