Smartphone app can screen semen in 5 seconds
- The smartphone app avoids the ‘stress and embarrassment’ of attending a clinic
- The sperm ‘analyser’ costs around £3.50 to make out of plastic on a 3-D printer
- It can give an accurate assessment of sperm count, and concentration levels
- Experts the device makes a male fertility test as simple as a home pregnancy test
Stephen Matthews For Mailonline
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Men trying for a baby with their partners will soon be able to check whether they are fertile with a smartphone app.
Instead of the ‘stress and embarrassment’ of attending a clinic, a would-be father can test his fertility in his own home.
The ‘analyser’, which is not yet commercially available, costs around £3.50 to make out of plastic on a 3-D printer.
Researchers claim that the device makes a male fertility test as simple as a home pregnancy test.
The ‘analyser’, which is not yet commercially available, costs around £3.50 to make out of plastic on a 3-D printer
For a man to check whether he is ‘firing blanks’ or not, would cost around £150 to £200 in a private clinic.
The reason for the high cost in a clinical setting is that the test requires highly trained staff using expensive and specialised equipment.
It is hoped that the ease of use of the device may help more men to assess whether they may have a problem.
Stigma at being infertile may make men reluctant to get themselves checked out, the researchers said.
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Research has found that issues with the man account for 40 per cent of cases of infertility, with 40 per cent down to the woman and 20 per cent unidentifiable.
The analyser is a small device that attaches to a smartphone, and uses the smartphone’s camera to video the swimming sperm.
It can give an accurate assessment of a man’s sperm count, as well as levels of concentration and mobility.
The tests were 98 per cent accurate, according to a study published yesterday in Science Translational Medicine.
Researchers claim the device makes a male fertility test as simple as a home pregnancy test
Dr Hadi Shafiee, of Brigham Women’s Hospital in the US said: ‘We wanted to come up with a solution to make male infertility testing as simple and affordable as home pregnancy tests.’
‘Men have to provide semen samples in these rooms at a hospital, a situation in which they often experience stress, embarrassment, pessimism and disappointment.
E-CIGARETTES DAMAGE SPERM
Electronic cigarettes were found earlier this year to damage men’s sperm through toxic chemicals in the flavourings.
The University College London study raised health concerns about the fashionable devices.
They found cinnamon-flavoured e-cigarettes in particular make sperm slower swimmers.
Bubblegum flavouring, another of the most popular, kills off cells in the testis which help to produce sperm.
It is well known that cigarettes may damage men’s fertility, through DNA damage to the sperm, while e-cigarettes are promoted as a healthy alternative to smoking.
‘Current clinical tests are lab-based, time-consuming and subjective. This test is low-cost, quantitative, highly accurate and can analyze a video of an undiluted, unwashed semen sample in less than five seconds.’
The analyser has an optical attachment that can connect to a smartphone. To test his fertility, a man produces a sperm sample, and places it on a disposable device, which connects to the smart phone.
The researchers said the smartphone-based device was able to detect abnormal semen samples based on WHO thresholds on sperm concentration and motility.
Dr John Petrozza, of Massachusetts General Hospital’s fertility centre said: ‘The ability to bring point-of-care sperm testing to the consumer, or health facilities with limited resources, is a true game changer.
‘More than 40 percent of infertile couples have difficulty conceiving due to sperm abnormalities and this development will provide faster and improved access to fertility care.’
The device could also be used by men who have had a vasectomy – to test to make sure the operation was successful.
Another application may be for animal breeders to confirm the virility of a sample.
As well as semen, the device, which needs to be certified in the US by the Food and Drug administration, could also be used to test blood and saliva samples.
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