Abstract
Objective: Infertility is one of the important common public health problems, as it affects about 15% of partners in their reproductive age. One of the common causes for infertility in men is varicocele. This study aimed to determine the common post-operative complications due to surgical varicocelectomy in infertile patients and postoperative improvements in semen quality reflected as spontaneous conception in married couple.
Design: Hospital-based retrospective study
Setting: Department of Surgery, Al-Jouf regional hospital, Saudi Arabia
Subjects: The study was done among 538 married patients during the year 2015, who were treated by surgical varicocelectomy for infertility. Varicocele patients were further divided into 3 grades according to the World Health Organization grading (WHO 1993). Hormone profiling was done to rule out hormonal causes of infertility. The semen quality analysis parameters, namely, concentration, morphology and motility were done before and after varicocelectomy, during the follow-up in the Urology clinic, to detect anticipated improvements. Patient couples with primary or secondary infertility with the duration of more than one year were included in the study. The patients aged >40 years, with subclinical varicocele and those with idiopathic non-obstructive azoospermia were excluded.
Interventions: Blood hormonal profiling tests, surgical varicocelectomy, semen analysis
Main outcome measures: Surgical varicocelectomy postoperative complications and improvements in the quality of semen
Results: There were significant increases in semen quality considering sperm motility and concentration after varicocelectomy. Spontaneous pregnancy was ascertained for wives of 139 patients (26%) within 12-months postoperative follow-up period.
Conclusion: The treatments of varicocele were effective and minimally invasive with fewer complications, well recovery, improved semen quality and fertility reflected as 26% spontaneous pregnancy among couples enrolled.