The incidence and etiology of sperm DNA fragmentation in the ejaculates of males with spinal cord injuries

Study design Retrospective descriptive study. Objectives To determine the incidence and probable etiology of sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) in a sample of males with spinal cord injury (SCI). Setting Hospital in Toledo, Spain; University-based Genetics laboratory in Madrid, Spain. Methods Semen collected by vibro-stimulation from 27 males with various levels of spinal cord injury. Classical semen parameters, SDF, leukocytospermia and pro-oxidant capacity were assessed and compared with a cohort of normozoospermic fertile donors ( n = 10). Results Males with SCI presented with lower semen quality compared with normozoospermic donors with respect to progressive motility ( p = 0.0002), SDF ( p