Immunoglobulin in Seminal Fluid of Fertile, Infertile, Vasectomy and Vasectomy Reversal Patients

Abstract

We measured the concentrations of IgG, IgA, and IgM, in the seminal fluid of 16 fertile men, 77 men of infertile marriages, 21 men who had undergone vasectomy reversal and 5 men who had undergone vasectomy only. The lower limits of sensitivity of the assay was 0.04 mg./dl. IgG (mean concentration 3.29 mg./dl., range 0.48 to 15.41 mg./dl.) and IgA (mean concentration 1.11 mg./dl., range 0.05 to 19.11 mg./dl.) were measureable in all specimens, but IgM (range 0.04 to 0.76 mg./dl.) was measureable in only 20 per cent. Intrasubject variability of IgG and IgA concentrations expressed as the coefficients of variation of serial determinations ranged from 18 to 40 per cent and 29 to 52 per cent, respectively. Discrepancies between the presence or absence of measurable IgM in serial determinations were unusual. The mean concentrations of seminal fluid IgG and IgA in the fertile group were not significantly different from the other patient groups. However, IgM was measurable in only 13 per cent of specimens from the fertile patients but in 62 per cent of specimens from the vasectomy reversal patients (p = 0.003). This suggests disruption of the blood-genital tract barrier following vasectomy and continuing after vasectomy reversal.