Updates on sperm retrieval techniques

In the most extreme form of male infertility, the male partner is azoospermic. The advent of in vitro fertilization (IVF)-intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) has revolutionized our ability to treat azoospermia in both obstructive and non-obstructive cases. In obstructive azoospermia, it allows paternity without microsurgical reproductive tract reconstruction and also in cases where the reproductive tract is unreconstructable. In men with non-obstructive azoospermia, microdissection testicular sperm extraction (mTESE) has allowed us to retrieve sperm in men with exceedingly low sperm production. The introduction of microsurgery in sperm retrieval improves sperm yields and quality while minimizing the chance of surgical morbidity.