A dual-center study of predictive factors for sperm retrieval through microdissection testicular sperm extraction and intracytoplasmic sperm injection outcomes in men with non-mosaic Klinefelter syndrome

PURPOSE: This study evaluated the predictors of sperm retrieval (SR) in non-mosaic Klinefelter syndrome (KS) patients undergoing microsurgical testicular sperm extraction (mTESE). The cutoff values of the predictors of SR and overall pregnancy rates after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) were analyzed for the positive SR (PSR) cases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was a dual-center retrospective study. Overall 118 patients with KS underwent mTESE between January 2011 and July 2021. Clinicopathological factors including comorbidities, endocrine profiles, and testicular volumes were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 58 patients showed PSR (49.2%) and 60 patients (50.8%) had negative SR (NSR). The mean overall age of the patients was 32.5 years. The NSR patients had a significantly greater prevalence of obesity, diabetes mellitus, and cerebrovascular disease. The PSR group had a significantly higher left testis mean volume (p=0.039). The differences between the two study groups regarding follicular-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, and testosterone variations at 1 and 3 months after mTESE were insignificant. Preoperative mean neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio was significantly greater in the NSR group (p=0.011), but the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio showed no significant difference between the two study groups. A live child birth was achieved in 53.4% of the PSR patients. Multivariate logistic analysis showed that total testicular volume >3.93 mL, left testis volume >1.79 mL, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio ≤1.82 were significantly associated with PSR. CONCLUSIONS: mTESE-ICSI is a feasible method for KS patients to have a child, and total testicular volume, left testis volume, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio might be predictors of successful SR.