Evaluation of the Sperm Motility Analyzer System (SMAS) for the Assessment of Sperm Quality in Infertile Men

Eighty-one fresh semen samples were analyzed to compare the sperm parameters obtained using the new Sperm Motility Analysis System (SMAS; version 1.0, Kaga Electronics, Tokyo, Japan) with the CellSoft(TM) Series 3000 (CRYO Resources, New York, USA) computer-assisted semen analysis (CASA) system and conventional manual semen analysis, based on WHO guidelines.. Significant correlations of sperm concentration (p<0.0001) and sperm motility (p<0.0001) were observed between SMAS and manual semen analysis estimates. There were also significant correlations of sperm concentration (p=0.0003) and sperm motility (p<0.0001) between SMAS and CellSoft estimates. Significant correlations for motility-related parameters were demonstrated in sperm velocity (p<0.0001), and linearity (linear velocity (VSL) divided by curvilinear velocity (VCL)×100) (p<0.0001), amplitude of lateral head displacement (ALH) (p<0.0001), and beat/cross frequency (BCF) (p=0.0127), between SMAS and CellSoft estimates. In this study, we showed the usefulness of the new SMAS, which has high reliability in estimating sperm concentration, sperm motility, velocity and linearity compared with CellSoft. SMAS can be a promising alternative, providing cost-effective semen analysis with the utility of the CASA system.