Semen fertility test

Barnet Hospital - Semen fertility screening test

An appointment is required for all semen analysis. Samples will not be accepted without an appointment.

First you will need a test form ordered by your Doctor, an appointment can then be made by:

On booking by telephone you will be given a date and time for the first available appointment.

On booking an appointment online you will be able to select a given a date and time to bring your pre-collected sample to the hospital (not the surgery).

  • Collected sample need to be taken to: Specimen reception, Pathology department, Level 3, Barnet Hospital.

What else do I need to know?

Patients are required to have between 2 and 5 days sexual abstinence (no sex) before collecting a sample for semen analysis.

All samples must be delivered to the laboratory at Barnet Hospital within 60 minutes of production. If you are unable to deliver the sample in this timeframe, please contact the laboratory for advice. There are no facilities on site to produce samples.

There is often a waiting time for appointments so if you need to cancel your appointment, please let us know as soon as possible so it can be offered to someone else.

How do I deliver the sample?

Once you have collected your sample and completed the accompanying form, bring both to: Specimen reception, Pathology department, Level 3, Barnet Hospital.

Before delivering the sample, keep it in a pocket close to your body and do not deliver it any other time than your given appointment.

When you arrive, please inform a member of staff at the specimen reception that you are there. Do not leave your specimen unattended.

Tips for collecting your semen sample

  • There are NO facilities for the collection of infertility samples within Barnet hospital consequently samples must be collected at home and delivered to the specified location at Barnet Hospital (you will be informed as to where to bring the sample at the time of booking).

  • Samples must be brought in as soon as they are produced, and the container kept in a pocket close to the body (to keep sample warm).

  • Make sure the specimen pot labelled with your details

  • It is essential that the specimen be delivered to the hospital within ONE HOUR (60minutes) of production. You must not have had sex or masturbated for 48 hours before collecting the sample but should have had an abstinence period of no longer than seven days.

  • First wash your hands and genitals with water only and dry thoroughly.

  • Please do not use any gels, lubricants or oils, as this will affect the results.

  • Collect the sample by masturbation - that is manual stimulation - collecting the entire specimen directly into the container.

  • It is essential that the whole ejaculate (discharge of semen) is collected, as the first part is often the richest in sperm numbers. Please notify us if you think that some of it has been lost.

  • Rubber sheaths (condoms) must NOT be used for collection. They contain substances which will kill the sperm.

  • Withdrawal (coitus interruptus) is not advised for collecting the sample.

How to store your sample

Please use the sterile container provided for you (100ml white top collection pot from the practice). No other sample container is acceptable.

  • Do not open the container until you are ready to produce the sample.

  • Seal the container immediately after sample collection with the lid; make sure that the lid is on tightly.

  • Ensure your name, date of birth plus date and time of production is written on the container label.

  • Place in sealable bag provided.

  • Please ensure that your name, date of birth, and address on the request form are correct. Please add the date and time of sample production and number of days of abstinence. The name and address of your doctor should also be stated.

  • Please deliver the specimen pot and request form at the appointed time and to the specific location: Specimen reception, Pathology department, Level 3, Barnet Hospital

  • You must hand your sample directly to a member of the reception staff, please do not leave it without seeing someone first. You will be required to fill out and sign a short form regarding timings of the sample.

  • Unlabelled samples will not be processed.

Semen test FAQ’s

Will I get an earlier appointment if I book online?

By booking online you will be able to choose a date and time to suit you and will also be able to view cancellations. In addition you will receive a text reminder.

Why do I have to abstain from ejaculating for 2 – 7 days?

When producing a sample for semen analysis, you will usually be asked to abstain from ejaculating for 2 to 7days before producing the sample for the test. Any longer than this will cause the sperm waiting in the epididymis to die off, thus giving a falsely high proportion of immotile sperm in your sample. On the other hand, if you ejaculate very near to the time of the test, there may be falsely low numbers of sperm in the sample.

Why do I have to provide a sample by masturbation?

This is because it is vital that there is no contamination of the sample with any other bodily fluids (e.g. vaginal, oral). Other fluids can be quite toxic to sperm. During natural intercourse, the sperm are only exposed to the vaginal secretions for a relatively short period of time as they quickly leave the vagina to pass into the womb.

Do not use condoms because these contain substances that will tend to kill the sperm.

Why is it necessary to bring the sample into the laboratory within one hour of ejaculation?

The semen must be examined as soon as possible after ejaculation, because if the sperm remain in the seminal fluid for too long, they will begin to die. After ejaculation into the vagina during normal intercourse, the sperm move very quickly out of the seminal fluid and into the female reproductive tract which is a more conducive environment for longer term sperm survival. Sperm will live for several days in the female tract, but only several hours in semen.

When will I receive the result?

The result will be sent back to your requesting Doctor (the GP) within 2-5 working days.

What tests are performed?

Appearance - What the sample looks like. Volume - how much there is of the sample. After 2 days abstinence there should be more than 2ml of semen.

Liquefaction - When semen is produced (ejaculated) it coagulates on contact with the air, then, over a short period of time, it liquefies. Liquefaction should be complete at the time of testing (1 hour after ejaculation).

Viscosity - This is a measure of how fluid the sample is (for example, water has a low viscosity, treacle has a high viscosity. Semen should have a fairly watery consistency at the time of testing (1 hour after ejaculation).

pH - The pH of a substance is a measure of how acid or alkaline it is (pH 7.0 is neutral). The pH of semen increases with time but should not be less than 7.2 at 1hour.

Motility - This measures which percentage of sperm are moving and how well they are moving.

Sperm count - The sperm count is a measure of the total number of sperm (spermatozoa) present. It is usually recorded in millions of sperm per ml of semen. A normal count is regarded as being greater than 20 million per ml.