Clinical evaluation of the new sperm antibody slide-test for detection of antibodies to spermatozoa in cervical mucus and seminal plasma.

A new commercially available Sperm Antibody Slide-Test kit for the detection of antibodies to sperm (Biotec Diagnostica International GmbH, Hannover, FRG) was evaluated with respect to its diagnostic value in immunological infertility. The new test correlates better with clinical findings than the sperm-agglutination and sperm-immobilization assays. Compared with the other two tests, it shows a higher percentage of positive reactions with infertile patients. None of the 100 fertile subjects was positive in the Sperm Antibody Slide-Test, as opposed to approx. 13% false positives by the conventional methods. In addition, the new test is easier to perform and requires no vital spermatozoa. Since the kit is stable for over 12 months at 4-8 degrees C, requires no spermatozoal preparations, and has a relatively quick reaction time of 2-5 minutes, it is well suited for the routine diagnosis of patients with immunological infertility problems.