They entered the shelves of pharmacies at the beginning of the month, in all discretion. And yet the “SpermCheck Fertility” constitute a small revolution on the market: they are the very first self-tests intended to evaluate male fertility.
Ten minutes and forty euros is enough to obtain an estimate of the concentration of sperm, reveals Le Figaro. Rather rudimentary, the self-test displays a result that is reminiscent of that of pregnancy tests. If the sperm concentration is at least 20 million per milliliter, two lines appear. If there is only one trait, the gametes are in lower concentration. According to the thresholds defined in 2010 by the World Health Organization, sperm are considered sufficiently numerous beyond 15 million per millilitre.
But fertility is not just a question of the quantity of gametes! It is quite possible to conceive with a concentration of spermatozoa above the “norm” and, on the contrary, to have infertility problems with a sufficient number of spermatozoa. The spermogram carried out as first intention in men when a couple consults for infertility evaluates many other parameters, such as the morphology of the gametes, their speed of movement, etc.
However, questioned by the daily, the director of the company which distributes this test in France believes that “there is an audience” in France for this type of product. During its first year on the market in Great Britain, the “SpermCheck Fertility” sold more than 15,000 copies.
And the statistics on the fertility problems of French couples are enough to comfort the entrepreneur in his confidence. Inserm estimated in 2012 that 18 to 24% of couples fail to conceive within 12 months of stopping contraception. Faced with the anxiety that a conception failure can generate, we imagine that resorting to a self-test, if only to “reassure” ourselves, could appeal to many couples.
So why use a test with partial results? “With this type of self-test, you have not advanced one iota on your infertility. This is useless. If you are unable to conceive a child and the test is abnormal, you will consult; but if the test is normal, you will also consult…”, summarizes Christophe Arnoult, CNRS/Grenoble-Alpes University research director, in the columns of the Figaro.
A few months before the launch on the French market of self-tests allowing rapid HIV screening, the marketing of these fertility tests shows that the ethical question linked to self-tests has not been completely resolved. The patient/consumer remains on his own, with additional information of course, but no additional response.
