The effect of discontinuous Percoll gradients preparation on sperm movement characteristics.

To determine the improvement of sperm movement characteristics after discontinuous Percoll gradients preparation, sperm movement characteristics from 60 normal semen samples were assessed before and after discontinuous Percoll gradients preparation using Hamilton-Thorn Motility Analyzer (HTMA). There was a significant correlation between manual and HTMA results for the percentage of motile sperm (r = 0.8670, p < 0.001). The percentage rapid, percentage motile, average path velocity (VAP), progressive velocity (VSL), curvilinear velocity (VCL), beat cross frequency (BCF), amplitude of head displacement (ALH), percentage of progressive motility, and hyperactivation were significantly increased after preparation. Therefore, this sperm preparation technique is a convenient and efficient method to prepare progressive motile sperm for assisted conceptive technology.