Have you heard of this?

Tweetness · #1 (**permalink**) 01-18-2008, 07:46 AM

My husband decided to tell his parents over Christmas that we are going through male-factor infertility issues. His mom shared that he & his dad also struggled to get PG. His mom had something in her that rejected his dad's sperm....This was an uncomfortable conversation for my husband to say the least.

Anyway, I'm wondering if maybe my husband could have inherited this? I was reading on another message board (where I don't post) & someone asked another member if their husband had been tested for antisperm antibodies? Have any of you heard of this? Were your husbands tested? I don't think that mine was but I'm not sure. Do you think that this could be a cause for his low motility & low sperm count?

My husband is currently not taking any vitamins or anything. Based on some of the posts here I am thinking maybe he should be????? We will do our first IVF the end of this month. I start shots on Jan. 28.

Always trying to find a reason . . . . .

mcweix · #2 (**permalink**) 01-18-2008, 02:33 PM

I have heard of this and it's pretty rare in men and I don't think a mom can pass it to a son. Her antisperm antibodies would be in her CM which he doesn't have. I'm pretty sure they test for that when a SA is done. I would call your DR with the info and ask if this is pertinant information....it very well may be!

Oatie32 · #3 (**permalink**) 01-19-2008, 07:46 AM

My husband had several SA's done but they never tested for that.. The reason I know is because I have all of the copies of the results and that isn't mentioned..

I did find this on the web though..

Quote:

Antisperm Antibody Test
An antisperm antibody test looks for special proteins (antibodies) that fight against a man's sperm in blood, vaginal fluids, or semen. The test uses a sample of sperm and adds a substance that binds only to affected sperm.
Semen can cause an immune system response in either the man's or woman's body. The antibodies can damage or kill sperm. If a high number of sperm antibodies come into contact with a man's sperm, it may be hard for the sperm to fertilize an egg. The couple has a hard time becoming pregnant. This is called immunologic infertility.
A man can make sperm antibodies when his sperm come into contact with his immune system. This can happen when the testicles are injured or after surgeries (such as a biopsy or vasectomy) or after a prostate gland infection. The testicles normally keep the sperm away from the rest of the body and the immune system.
A woman can have an allergic reaction to her partner's semen and make sperm antibodies. This kind of immune response is not fully understood but may affect fertility. This is a rare cause of infertility.

WebMD - Better information. Better health.

and I found this too..

Quote:

Depending on where the antibodies are located, sperm can be affected in a variety of ways. When the antibodies are found on the tail, sperm tends to be immobilized or may clump together. Antibodies positioned on the head prevent the sperm from properly binding to the egg, thereby preventing fertilization from taking place.

So, I do believe it can affect the motility and such.. that's what that last quote says atleast..

HTH

dmg05 · #4 (**permalink**) 01-25-2008, 07:51 AM

It sounds like, more than likely, your MIL probably had hostile CM. This would not be something that would be passed down to your DH... it is a female fertility factor.

My DH sa's did test the antibody levels in his semen, but I'm not sure if it is typically done though. Might be something to talk to the uro about.

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