Male infertility – a holistic approach

At The Agora we believe the man must be investigated as thoroughly as the woman and given as much support. Whilst many clinics offer IVF and ICSI to overcome fertility issues due to the sperm, we take a more holistic approach to investigating male infertility, supporting the man as well as the couple.

We aim not only to maximise the chances of success in IVF with ICSI but also to improve the man’s natural fertility so that he can try and conceive naturally without the need for intervention.

Our approach to assessing male infertility is to investigate a much wider range of factors that may affect sperm production, quantity and quality, so that sperm can be optimised both before and during treatment.

Mr Jonathan Ramsay

Consultant Urologist Male Fertility Specialist

Jonathan is a Consultant urologist at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in London, and specialises in all aspects of male infertility. He works at the Fertility Unit at Hammersmith Hospital and at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. He has collaborated on a number of research projects with Carole Gilling-Smith which has led to several publications about sperm retrieval and the outcomes of ICSI using fresh and frozen sperm.

Current research interests are focusing on men with non-obstructive azoospermia who require micro-testicular sperm extraction (microtese). Jonathan sees patients with male factor infertility either in London or at the Agora and will undertakes procedures (particularly PESA) by arrangement at the Agora.

Jonathan has an extensive research profile and is currently working with the Agora medical and laboratory teams on various research projects including the role of nutrition, weight loss, genital tract infection and DNA Fragmentation on overall fertility.

Enhanced Male Fertility Assessment

Some men opt to have an Enhanced Fertility MOT, which is a more detailed male fertility test. It includes some additional tests of sperm health and function. And it gives us a far greater insight into your reproductive health.

It can be very helpful if previous or home sperm tests have been normal and your infertility remains ‘unexplained’. Or when these tests have been abnormal but you have not been given an explanation as to why.
Sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) is known to be higher in infertile men. Testing for Sperm DNA fragmentation measures the quality of sperm as a DNA package carrier, and it therefore is more significant than the parameters analysed in standard semen analyses.
The Enhanced Male Fertility assessment also includes a short zoom consultation with your doctor. They’ll discuss your results with you, and may recommend some lifestyle changes or treatments.