If you’re starting a fertility evaluation with MCRM Fertility, a semen analysis is often one of the first tests your care team will suggest, and it’s simpler than many people expect. The test gives a clear picture of several sperm health markers in a single visit, at MCRM’s Center for Male Infertility (CMI) here in St. Louis or Tulsa.
What a Semen Analysis Measures
A semen analysis, according to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, is the cornerstone of evaluating male fertility. Several measurements together describe sperm health:
- Sperm count, or concentration: how many sperm are present in a given sample.
- Motility: how well sperm move, since sperm need to travel efficiently to reach and fertilize an egg.
- Morphology: the shape and structure of individual sperm.
- Volume: the total amount of fluid in the sample.
At MCRM’s Center for Male Infertility (CMI), testing goes a step further with magnified semen analysis (MSA), which evaluates these same parameters under greater magnification for a more detailed look at sperm quality. If you’re curious how your numbers compare to typical reference ranges, MCRM’s team can walk you through what’s considered typical for each parameter.
How to Prepare
Before your test, you’ll typically be asked to abstain from ejaculation for 2 to 5 days, the window that produces the most representative results. Waiting too long or too short a time can each affect the sample, so following this window helps produce results that reflect your typical semen parameters rather than a one-off variation.
On the day of your test, your care team will explain exactly where and how to collect the sample. Because sperm parameters can vary somewhat from day to day, more than one sample may be requested to build an accurate picture over time.
What to Expect at Your Appointment
Scheduling with the CMI requires a formal appointment rather than a walk-in visit. Your care team will let you know what to bring to check-in, and the collection itself happens in a private, comfortable setting designed with your privacy in mind.
Results typically come back to your ordering physician within 3 to 5 business days, at which point your care team can review them with you and talk through what they mean for your specific situation. Schedule your semen analysis with the CMI when you’re ready to take this step.
Understanding Your Results
If one or more of your results comes back outside the typical range, that doesn’t automatically mean infertility. Semen parameters vary naturally from sample to sample, and a value outside the standard reference range doesn’t necessarily mean a person can’t conceive, just as a value within range doesn’t tell the whole story on its own. Many people fall somewhere in between fertile and infertile, a state some clinicians describe as subfertility, where conception is possible but may take longer or benefit from support.
Sperm issues are the sole cause of infertility in about 20 percent of couples and are a contributing factor in another 30 to 40 percent, so evaluating male fertility factors is a necessary part of every fertility workup. If your results point to something that needs a closer look, retesting is a normal and expected next step.
What Happens Next
If additional questions come up after your results, follow-up options might include repeat testing or more detailed diagnostics like DNA fragmentation testing, available through MCRM’s CMI. These are simply part of building a complete picture of your fertility, one that helps your care team recommend next steps with confidence.
MCRM’s fertility screening process walks through how male and female testing come together to give you and your care team a full picture before moving forward with treatment.
Schedule a Semen Analysis at MCRM
If you’re ready to take this step, MCRM’s Center for Male Infertility is here to walk through the process and your results together, with clear answers at every stage. Schedule your appointment with the CMI today, and let’s find out what your next step looks like.