Glossary

Male Sexual Dysfunction & Male Infertility Glossary

 

Term Definition
Andropause A natural emotional and physical change that occurs with age caused by a decrease in male hormones.
Azoospermia The complete absence of sperm in the ejaculate.
Erectile Dysfunction The inability to develop or maintain a sufficient penile erection for satisfactory sexual performance.
Hypogonadism The medical term for a defect or lack of function of the gonads - these include the testes (and ovaries in women). The Gonads function is to produce hormones sperm (and eggs in women).
Impotence See Erectile Dysfunction definition above.
Male Birth Control Methods of birth control such as condoms and vasectomy, which are available to men.
Male Factor Infertility Inability for a man to produce children.
Male Infertility See Male Factor Infertility above.
Male Sterilization See Vasectomy below
No Scalpel, No Needle Vasectomy Unconventional method of performing a vasectomy which is less invasive and requires no stitches.
Peyronies Disease The development of plaque on the upper or lower side of the penis in layers containing erectile tissue.
Premature Ejaculation (P.E.) Is a lack of ejaculatory control which is disruptive to sexual intercourse. Also referred to as: rapid ejaculation, rapid climax, premature climax, or early ejaculation
Retrograde Ejaculation Occurs when sperm is directed into the bladder rather than being directed through the urethra into the semen.
Semen Analysis A test conduct on semen to determine sperm quality.
Sperm Bank The process of freezing and preserving a man's semen for future use.
Sperm Count A measurement of how many million sperm there are in each milliliter of fluid. Also known as sperm concentration.
Sperm Washing A process that removes: debris, white blood cells, and prostaglandins, and dead sperm. This process concentrates the sperm into a small volume that can easily be handled by the uterus. This process is used to prepare sperm for an intrauterine insemination (IUI).
Varicocele Surgery See Varicocelectomy below.
Varicocelectomy An outpatient surgical correction of varicocele.
Varicocele a dilated (enlarged) group of veins in the scrotum.
Varicoceles See Varicocele above.
Vasectomy A minor surgical procedure which involves the severing and blocking of a man's vas deferens inorder to prevent sperm from entering the seminal stream (ejaculate).
Vasectomy Reversal Generally involves reconnecting the two ends of the vas deferens that were cut during the vasectomy.
Zero Sperm Count See Azoospermia above.