Acupuncture for the Treatment of Cryptozoospermia

Background: Male infertility accounts for 30%-50% of the causes in infertile couples. Cryptozoospermia is defined as so few sperm in the ejaculate that they are identified only after concentration and centrifugation of the sample. Objective: To illustrate a case of cryptozoospermia treated successfully with acupuncture. Patient: A 35-year-old man presented in 2006 reporting that his wife had been unable to conceive for several years. Clinical examination excluded varicocele. Intervention: Therapeutic protocol included 10 acupuncture treatments at an interval of 2-3 days. The needles were introduced into the selected points, mobilized until the De Qi sensation was elicited, then left in place for 30 minutes. Points on the Kidney Meridian were selected since a main function of the Kidneys is to regulate reproduction, growth, and development. Main Outcome Measures: We obtained 2 spermograms from the patient: 1 prior to the beginning of treatment and another 3 weeks after its conclusion. Results: Prior to acupuncture, at an ejaculate volume of 2.7 mL, the total sperm count was 0.54 million (normal count, >40 million), and sperm density was 0.2 million/mL (normal count, >20 million). After 10 acupuncture sessions, the total sperm count/ejaculate was 46.5 million and sperm density was 18.6 million sperm/mL, a 90-fold increase. Conclusions: Acupuncture successfully treated this patient with long-standing infertility caused by cryptozoospermia. Prospective clinical trials are necessary to validate these findings.