Variations within and amongst normal men of movement characteristics of seminal spermatozoa

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Abstract
Movement characteristics of the seminal spermatozoa of 9 men of contaemporary fertility were studied using time-exposure photomicrography. Five different ejaculates, collected over a 9 mo. period, were analyzed for each man. The assessment of sperm motility focused on classical parameters (percent) motile spermatozoa and the total swimming speed, considering all motile spermatozoa) and several newly defined movement characteristics (percent progressive spermatozoa, progressive swimming speed and percent straight-swimming, rolling and yawing spermatozoa). These new measures distinguished weakly mitole from vigorously motile spermatozoa, and also assessed geometrical attributes of the swimming trajectories of the vigorous spermatozoa. The percent motility and the total and progressive swimming speeds did not differ significantly among the fertile men. The percentage of progressive spermatozoa differed significantly among the 9 men, but this was due to the outlying values of a single donor. Significant differences among men did occur in the percentages of straight-swimming, rolling and yawing spermatozoa. Considerable variability was found among the different ejaculates of individual men.