FNA Mapping: “Knowing Before You Go” Should Be Standard in Sperm Retrieval
As a leading male fertility expert, Dr. Paul Turek has helped thousands of patients to become fathers — even those who were previously told they are “sterile.” Fatherhood can still be achievable because many men have hidden testicular sperm that, once located, can be used to fertilize an egg via in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).
Dr. Turek largely attributes his success finding viable, hidden sperm to his signature sperm-mapping procedure, which detects sperm in advance of sperm retrieval and guides it. While it would only make sense that sperm FNA mapping would be the standard for male infertility care, that is unfortunately not the norm at many clinics around the world.
The Turek Clinic Difference
Most doctors now offer unguided (read: “blind”) and aggressive microdissection procedures like microTESE for men who have azoospermia (a lack of sperm in semen). Patients are often told that this procedure is their best (or only) option for discovering hidden sperm, unaware of sperm FNA mapping. Unfortunately, Dr. Turek has seen hundreds of patients with failed microTESE procedures after seeking care from less skilled doctors. And, in many such cases, he is able to “rescue” them by finding sperm using FNA mapping after failed microTESE procedures.
Dr. Turek offers sophisticated mapping techniques that allow him to locate sperm in the testicles in advance rather than blindly going into the procedure, hoping to find it when eggs are retrieved with IVF. Sperm mapping removes almost all the guesswork for finding sperm and achieves a much higher overall success rate: 92-100%! As Dr. Turek states, “Nothing beats knowing before you go!”
The Many Advantages of Sperm FNA Mapping
| Unguided Microdissection | Sperm Retrieval After Sperm FNA Mapping | |
|---|---|---|
| Retrieval Success | 50% of men will have sperm with blind microTESE and 50% will not. So, half of men have unnecessarily invasive procedures. | If FNA mapping finds sperm, sperm retrieval procedures find sperm in 92-100% of cases. |
| Invasiveness | Blind procedures are more extensive and invasive and pose greater risks for “damaging” the testicles. A lower testosterone level is the most concerning risk from microTESE procedures. | By identifying where sperm is hiding before performing sperm retrieval surgery, Dr. Turek can avoid microTESE sperm retrieval procedures in 50% of cases (using TESA/TESE instead). |
| Finding Sufficient Sperm | Unguided microTESE finds sperm in half of attempted cases. Most doctors consider finding 1-2 sperm to be “success.” | Aided by sperm mapping, Dr. Turek has a 92-100% success rate at retrieving enough sperm to fertilize all eggs with IVF. |
| Avoiding More Invasive Microdissection Techniques | If you don’t know where sperm are within the testis, a microTESE is needed to find sperm pockets. However, it is the most aggressive form of surgical sperm retrieval. | After FNA mapping, half of all patients can skip microTESE in favor of a less invasive TESA or TESE procedures. Furthermore, 80% of patients need procedures on only one testicle rather than both. |
| Less Anxiety | Given the uncertainty surrounding microTESE, many patients wind up having to freeze eggs or use donor sperm as a backup. | Knowing that the chance of finding sperm is very high, patients can schedule a fresh sperm retrieval along with IVF with low chances of needing a backup plan. |
| Confidence in Results | Given that FNA mapping can find usable sperm in 30% of patients who have no sperm on microTESE, many patients wind up trying guided sperm mapping next anyway. | Sperm mapping results are conclusive. Of Dr. Turek’s patients where FNA mapping found no hidden sperm, fewer than 1% have sperm found by any other method. |
Schedule a Consultation to Learn More
Dr. Turek has been able to find hidden sperm in many patients who previously had microTESE, so if you want to know with more certainty whether your testicles have good sperm for IVF, schedule a consultation.
For those patients who are new to this process altogether, Dr. Turek strongly encourages men to start with sperm FNA mapping. Having an unguided microdissection is painful, can fail and can have lifelong ramifications for the health of the testicles, so why not save yourself the time and unnecessary discomfort by starting with a guided sperm retrieval process at the start? Call 1-888-TUREKMD today.
