Damaged Testes Affecting Fertility
Elsewhere, we have written about what sperm is and how it is produced and the various quantities and parameters sperms need to have for a man to be described as having normal fertility (our indexing page Causes of Male Infertility).
These may not be achieved and the testes may not function properly or may be damaged through an external injury, they may overheat through the presence of a varicocele or they may have suffered damage following an operation such as ones to correct a hernia, undescended testis or twisted testicle. If the result is a situation similar to a man having a vasectomy, there is more information on our page on vasectomy reversal.
Minor damage may not have any implications for fertility but with more major damage, as long as there are some sperms produced, fertility treatment is normally possible through In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) using Intra-Cytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). In some circumstances sperm may have to be obtained through surgical sperm retrieval in a relatively minor operation. The exact circumstances will vary depending on the cause and extent of the damage to the testes and this should be discussed with your fertility specialist. In extreme cases where there is no possibility of retrieving a sperm, sperm donation may be the only option and this too can be discussed with our fertility doctor or counsellor.
