A Comparison of Glycerol Egg Yolk Citrate and Sperm Freeze Medium in Human Sperm Cryopreservation

Background: Cryoprotectant has a pivotal role in preventing cell injury during sperm cryopreservation. Objective: To compare the post-thawed sperm parameters between the use of glycerol egg yolk citrate (GEYC) and Sperm Freeze medium as cryoprotectant in human sperm cryopreservation. Material and Method: This was an experimental study. Thirty healthy volunteers whose sperm was collected in our clinic during August, 2009 through October, 2009 were included in the study. All of the semen samples were analysed with standard technique using the World Health Organization protocol. The semen samples were divided into 2 groups and mixed with GEYC and SpermFreeze medium respectively. Pre-freezing and post-thawed sperm parameters were analyzed with Computer-Assisted Sperm Analysis system. Results: A total of 30 volunteers who could collect their semen samples participated in the study. The mean and standard deviation of sperm concentration was 53.3 ± 27.5 million/milliliter, the percentage of sperm motility was 68.2 ± 22.1 and the percentage of normal sperm morphology was 4.7 ± 1.6. When compared the semen samples that freezing them with GEYC or SpermFreeze medium, there was no significant difference in mean post-thawed sperm concentration (33.7 ± 17.4 vs. 32.7 ± 15.6 million/milliliter, p -value = 0.827) and percentage of sperm motility (38.6 ± 25.6 vs. 35.1 ± 28.1, p -value = 0.616). However, it had no significant effect on normal sperm morphology before and after freezing-thawing cycle and also, there was no significant difference in percentage of post-thawed normal sperm morphology between two cryomediums (4.4 ± 1.3 vs. 4.4 ± 1.4, p -value = 0.849). Conclusion: For normal semen samples, use of GEYC medium is an acceptable option in human sperm cryopreservation. Keywords: Glycerol, Egg yolk, Cryopreservation, Sperm parameters