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Varicocele and Male Infertility pp 425–432Cite as

Should a Varicocele Be Repaired Before Assisted Reproductive Technology Treatment?

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Abstract

The presence of varicocele is the most common correctable factor for male infertility. There is strong evidence to support surgical repair of clinical varicocele to improve semen parameters, decrease seminal oxidative stress and sperm DNA fragmentation, and increase the chance of natural conception. Microscopic varicocelectomy is accepted as the standard of care with higher clinical outcomes and least complication rate. However, it is unclear whether performing varicocelectomy in men with clinical varicocele prior to assisted reproductive technology improves treatment outcome or is more “cost-effective” than just proceeding with assisted reproduction. The following chapter evaluates the clinical evidence pertaining to varicocele in semen parameters (including sperm retrieval rate), the pregnancy rate in natural conception vs. assisted reproduction, and cost analysis of varicocele surgery in the setting of couples who are undergoing assisted reproductive technology treatment.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. AndroUrology Centre, Spring Hill, QLD, Australia

    Eric Chung

Authors
  1. Eric Chung
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. ANDROFERT, Andrology & Human Reproduction Clinic, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil

    Sandro C Esteves

  2. S.H. Ho Urology Centre, Department of Surgery, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Chak-Lam Cho

  3. Department of Urology, Hamad Medical Corporation, Weill Cornell Medicine Qatar, Doha, Qatar

    Ahmad Majzoub

  4. Department of Urology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Ashok Agarwal

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Chung, E. (2019). Should a Varicocele Be Repaired Before Assisted Reproductive Technology Treatment?. In: Esteves, S., Cho, CL., Majzoub, A., Agarwal, A. (eds) Varicocele and Male Infertility. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-79102-9_37

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-79102-9_37

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-79101-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-79102-9

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