Low morphology means nothing!

[Snowglobe21]

So after 2 months of debating whether to post this thread due to personal conflicts over whether I should override the WHO and research done in the early 2000's, I have finally decided that I need to say something.

When men go in for a semen analysis and are diagnosed with "low sperm morphology" according to the kruger method, I think it should be completely and utterly ignored. I have read every study published on sperm morphology according to the kruger method because I am a university student and can access research studies the general public can't read for free. Most have found that sperm morphology can be very low in males and they can still father children. One study found the average was 3% in males that had fathered children and most found that anything 3% and over was fine.

That being said, a lot of false information is out there. Some doctors (looney's if you ask me) say that 14% is the normal. With the strictness of the kruger method, good luck getting anywhere near that. All I am saying is that my baby's father (husband to be soon) got me pregnant with 3% morphology on his last SA. That was after taking like 20 vitamins which did nothing. So another point of this post is saying, honestly vitamins do nothing and only make people feel like they are doing something better. My hubbies first SA was 4%. If your husband has normal sperm count and motility, I would say to completely ignore the morphology. My fiancee had over 200 million sperm and a high motility and vitality etc, and we have gotten pregnant twice in 15 months while I have PCOS. That shows me morph is not a problem at all and only the female factor is when faced with this. I have found it rare to find people only dealing with morphology as the issue. Typically, the wife has PCOS, Endo, etc or he has low sperm count or motility. I believe those are the real problem and morph just scares people.

 

[charbaby]

My o/h has had 2 s/as and one came back with 2% morph and the other 2.5% morph but are fertility specialist said there is no concern because of the amount he had and great swimmers. Think it only matters when you have less than 20 million spermies x

 

[greekgirl]

actually my OH has low motility (5%) but really high numbers of spermies. his morphology was never brought up by doc as a problem probably because of his 164million count. but lookingt at his morphology now it says normal is 14% and up and he has 7%! he has been taking wellman conception for two weeks... ?
probably won't help huh?
we have been trying on and off for over 2 years.

 

[Armywife84]

Hahaha, I told you Snowglobe!

 

[kazzab25]

Snowglobe thanks for the post! My oh had low everything! 5 million speem low morph at 1%and motility gave up smoking and now has 22 million, 4% morph and normal motility so it's nice to hear of your research regards the morph ! I too have PCOS

 

[Posey]

Snowglobe, thanks for the info. My hubby has 0% normal morph, we've been trying for 8 months. My RE, whom we saw last week, said very clearly to us that having 100% abnormal sperm does NOT mean we can't conceive naturally. At first I was delighted to hear this, but have felt so skeptical since... my hubby's counts are fab and motility is good. RE says he has been doing this for 25 years, and he sees it often where ppl with 0%morph will be booked for treatments, and cancel because they fall pregnant. I want to believe him, but still feel like there's such a small chance we'll get our BFP... this helped, to read this. Thank you xo

 

[Sophe]

what about under 3% though like 1%? still no bfp for us with 1%

 

[Posey]

Ladies, I want to update... I got my BFP yesterday after 7-8 months of trying, with a hubby with 100% abnormal morphology (count and motility good). . . so it IS possible, don't give up!

 

[Sophe]

Ladies, I want to update... I got my BFP yesterday after 7-8 months of trying, with a hubby with 100% abnormal morphology (count and motility good). . . so it IS possible, don't give up!

Maybe it was just a one off bad test though, 7-8 months isn't long at all.

 

[Posey]

Ladies, I want to update... I got my BFP yesterday after 7-8 months of trying, with a hubby with 100% abnormal morphology (count and motility good). . . so it IS possible, don't give up!

Maybe it was just a one off bad test though, 7-8 months isn't long at all.

He did two, both 0% normal morph. You're right, 7-8 months isn't long. We saw an RE who told us that 0% normal forms does not mean natural conception is not possible, and he was right. More difficult, but not impossible.

 

[Snowglobe21]

Congrats Posey, thats awesome! Hi Sophe, glad to see you around still. I honestly wouldn't worry too much about the morph, I know I sound ignorant slightly for saying it but seriously I wouldn't just say things I dont mean to make you feel better. My hubbies last SA showed 3% morph. How much a difference can 1% to 3% be. I think people waste their time focusing on the morph as the reason they cant concieve when their are other areas to explore.

 

[Snowglobe21]

Good luck kazzab25! Best of luck with the next ICSI/IVF cycle!

@greekgirl. 7% is very good. They tested him according to the kruger method which now has anything greater than or equal to 4% as being normal. DOn't believe me, check out the 2010 sperm guidelines booklet by WHO. Also go to my thread SA MORPHOLOGY: POST YOUR RESULTS HERE. You can prob find it through the search tool or my posts. On it, I have posted 4 studies showing morphology means nothing and most men with low morph father a child. I also posted the WHO guidelines and the page numbers showing the breakdown of morph in men. We got pregnant twice in 6 months with 4% and then 3% morph on the second test so 7 is nothing to focus on.

 

[Glitter_Berrie]

I think drs aka crazies try to find something to make a problem out of it to make money when it comes to fertility

 

[Snowglobe21]

I agree! We were about to start 500/month treatments right before we got pregnant. and if those didn't work it would have been a 15,000 treatment. He also scared us to death and my hubby was miserable for months when he was told he couldn't have kids naturally. UGH DOCTORS. (some of them)

 

[greekgirl]

thanks for the info. and that's terrible! they actually told him that?!

 

[Nita]

I agree morphology is not a big issue if count and motility are good

My oh did a test in India and normal form was 87% and here it was 4% only a month apart so there were no changes in his lifestyle

Also two fertility specialists who saw that it was 4% weren't too concerned at all as the rest was all ok

 

[Nita]

I agree morphology is not a big issue if count and motility are good

My oh did a test in India and normal form was 87% and here it was 4% only a month apart so there were no changes in his lifestyle

Also two fertility specialists who saw that it was 4% weren't too concerned at all as the rest was all ok

 

[Chatnoir]

At the end of 2010 hubby did an SA and his GP said we would need IVF as he had only 4% morphology. His count and everything else was fine. We were refered to a FS and he said 4% was fine as his count was good. We have been trying 18 months and have our next appt with the fs on Thursday.
Think hubby is still concerned his sperm could be the issue but I dont think it will be!

 

[slick]

hi,

this forum post ranks high on Google for low morphology and I think I remember reading it some time ago so thought it worth registering, & hopefully a crumb of hope to some couples out there.

We'd been trying for a baby for nearly 2 years, 6 months ago I started going for sperm tests. The first was terrible, 1% morphology. I instantly improved my lifestyle and went back a month or so later and it was at 3%, which was much better but still not good enough.

Since then, whilst I wasn't super obese, I've been losing weight, staying out of hot baths/saunas etc, keeping my laptop away from the crown jewels, avoiding standing near smokers, drinking less alcohol, taking numerous supplements, including Wellman Conception (might be a UK/EU thing), Zinc, Cod liver oil with Omega 3 and following a report a few months back, eating a few walnuts every day.

Following visits to a highly regarded fertility expert, IVF was very much looking on the cards. Ahead of starting the treatment in a few months time, and another sperm test in a few weeks time, last Tuesday, I'd started acupuncture with a clinic who were reporting success for men with sperm issues.

Then, this week, my wife did a pregnancy test and I'm delighted to say it came out positive. It's still very very early stages, but I hope that one of the above has helped my sperm count. I'm tempted to go for the sperm test to see if my morphology has improved further, if it does/has, I will report back.

I know this may not assist every man out there in the same boat, but I'm hoping one of these numerous small additions to my diet & lifestyle has made the improvement & may for others.

 

[heatherlynn5]

Hello Slick. That makes me so so happy to read your post. I am new to this forum and me and my husband have been dealing with low morphology (0-3%) for almost three years now trying to conceive. We have tried IUI and IVF. His morphology is the ONLY thing wrong with him, and nothing is wrong with me! It has been a struggle but we never give up hope that we will naturally get pregnant! Congrats to you and your wife!!!