TESE

In the event of azoospermia, the complete absence of sperm in the ejaculate, it is worth trying to extract it directly from a testicle. It is rare for spermatogenesis to have dried up completely, sperm is frequently still being formed in the testicular tissue – even if to a very limited extent.

Under local or general anaesthetic, some tiny pieces of tissue are extracted directly from a testicle after opening the skin (testicular biopsy “TESE”). One piece of tissue is subjected to a histological examination, whilst the others are either deep-frozen (“cryopreservation”) or – if an ICSI treatment is being performed at the same time – used directly for the intracytoplasmic sperm injection.