THE POST COITAL TEST FOR SPERM INVASION GIVES A CORRECT IDEA OF SPERM PENETRATION Although the sperm count is the single most accurate method of determining the male's fertility potential in the marriage, the ultimate benefit of a normal sperm count is to have a rapid and massive penetration of the wife's cervical mucus by the freshly ejaculated sperm. One way of checking this is to do a post coital test on the wife, which is a sort of sperm count performed on the wife's cervical mucus after intercourse. If a large number of healthy, motile sperm are seen in the wife's cervical mucus after intercourse, it is a very good sign. Within two to five minutes of ejaculation, large numbers of sperm should have already entered the cervical mucus. Since the ejaculate has not even liquefied from initial coagulation yet, this would indicate that the sperm are able to gain quick access to the cervix and do not need to wait for liquefaction. The difficulty with the post coital test, despite its obvious functional importance, is that there is only a very short, precise interval during every month when a woman's cervical mucus is of the proper physical texture to permit sperm invasion. During rest of the month, her cervical mucus represents a solid barrier to sperm penetration. Thus, if the post coital test is not done at the exactly right time of the month, it may give a false impression that the husband's sperm is inadequate. Indeed, the usual cause for a poor post coital test is improper timing of the test on the wrong day of the month, rather than any problem with the husband's sperm. Furthermore, in some women even this short interval during which the cervical mucus is sufficiently fluid to allow sperm penetration may not occur, and that they may be their fertility problem. Thus a sperm count must be performed on the husband on at least three occasions, complemented by a microscopic analysis of the wife's cervical mucus after intercourse (only at the right interval during the month), in order to determine accurately the relative fertility of the male partner. THE CERVICAL MUCUS AND IMMUNOLOGICAL TESTING Some cases of infertility may be due to the wife developing an immune reaction to the husband’s sperm. This antibody destroys the sperms.
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