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[Effect of the cellular and humoral immune response in infertile couples and its relationship with infections.]

OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of different microorganisms isolated from the urogenital tract of infertile men and assess whether there are differences in semen parameters according to the presence or absence of genital infections.


METHODS
280 semen samples from infertile men were studied retrospectively. Semen parameters were analyzed according to the World Health Organization criteria (WHO 2010). Microbiological analysis was performed using the modified method of Stamey and Meares proposed by Santoianni et al.


RESULTS
Microbiological studies showed absence of microorganisms or presence of usual colonizing flora in 67.86% of the samples (GROUP 1) and presence of at least one pathogen or potential pathogen in 32.14% (GROUP 2). No significant differences in ejaculate volume (p=0.353), pH value (p=0.801), motility (p>0.30), citric acid concentration (p=0.383) and viscosity (p=0.948) were observed between the two groups. The relative sperm count was significantly lower in infected patients than in those without pathogens (p=0.05). Teratozoospermia index (TZI) was evaluated. Samples of infected patients showed TZI values higher than patients without microorganisms or normal genital tract flora (p<0.0001).


CONCLUSIONS
A third of the studied population had genital infections. Based on our results, sperm culture may be considered in the early stages of the study of the infertile patient. Early diagnosis of an infectious disease could be useful for a suitable treatment for couples with reproductive failure.