Management of male hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism

Reproductive outcomes of microdissection testicular sperm extraction in hypogonadotropic hypogonadal azoospermic men after gonadotropin therapy

PURPOSE

Male infertility caused by hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (HH) is not common. The main treatment is gonadotropins for 12 months or longer. If the patient is still azoospermic, conventional or microdissection testicular sperm extraction (mTESE) may further help in sperm retrieval. We aimed to analyze the fertility outcomes of HH men treated at our institute.

METHODS

From 2008 to 2020, infertile men with hormone profile showing HH were enrolled. Gonadotropin therapy was prescribed if parenthood was being considered. Assisted reproductive technology was available to help patients attain fertility depending on the results of sperm analysis. Patient outcomes, including sperm retrieval, pregnancy and live birth rates, were analyzed.

RESULTS

Seventeen initially azoospermic patients were administered gonadotropins for an average of 11.1 months, and sperm was subsequently found in the ejaculate of seven patients (41%). mTESE was performed on the other ten (59%) who were still azoospermic. For these 10 patients, they had collectively undergone an average 12.1 months (range 6-23 months) of gonadotropin therapy. Sperm was retrieved in nine (90.0%) cases. After 11 cycles of TESE-ICSI, six (54.5%) successful pregnancies were recorded, resulting in five (55.6%) cases with live-born babies, including two sets of twins, and one case of missed abortion at 9 weeks of gestation.

CONCLUSION

Gonadotropin therapy reversed azoospermia in a portion of the HH male patients studied. Of men who were still azoospermic after gonadotropin treatment, a majority could still have testicular sperm retrieved by mTESE for use in assisted reproductive technology, subsequently resulting in live births.

[AN ADULT MALE CASE OF CRYPTORCHIDISM CONCOMITANT WITH HYPOGONADOTROPIC HYPOGONADISM WHO UNDERWENT hCG THERAPY AND SHOWED A SPONTANEOUS DESCENT OF THE TESTIS]

A 32-year-old Japanese man was referred to our hospital with a chief complaint of the delayed puberty with having been aware of it since he was in his teens. Physical examination demonstrated the small penis, the impalpable left testis, and the atrophic right testis in the scrotum. Abdominal magnetic resonance imaging showed the left testis of 8 mm in the external inguinal ring. Endocrinological blood tests revealed that testosterone and luteinizing hormone were 0.34 ng/mL and 1 mIU/mL, respectively, leading to a diagnosis of the left cryptorchidism with hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. The hCG therapy was initiated, resulting in the increased volume and spontaneous descent into the scrotum of the left testis after 6 months of the treatment. The hCG therapy could be an alternative treatment for surgery for cryptorchidism with hypogonadism in adults.

The Development of Gonadotropins for Clinical Use in the Treatment of Infertility

The first commercially available gonadotropin product was a human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) extract, followed by animal pituitary gonadotropin extracts. These extracts were effective, leading to the introduction of the two-step protocol, which involved ovarian stimulation using animal gonadotropins followed by ovulation triggering using hCG. However, ovarian response to animal gonadotropins was maintained for only a short period of time due to immune recognition. This prompted the development of human pituitary gonadotropins; however, supply problems, the risk for Creutzfeld-Jakob disease, and the advent of recombinant technology eventually led to the withdrawal of human pituitary gonadotropin from the market. Urinary human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) preparations were also produced, with subsequent improvements in purification techniques enabling development of products with standardized proportions of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) activity. In 1962 the first reported pregnancy following ovulation stimulation with hMG and ovulation induction with hCG was described, and this product was later established as part of the standard protocol for ART. Improvements in immunopurification techniques enabled the removal of LH from hMG preparations; however, unidentified urinary protein contaminants remained a problem. Subsequently, monoclonal FSH antibodies were used to produce a highly purified FSH preparation containing <0.1 IU of LH activity and <5% unidentified urinary proteins, enabling the formulation of smaller injection volumes that could be administered subcutaneously rather than intramuscularly. Ongoing issues with gonadotropins derived from urine donations, including batch-to-batch variability and a finite donor supply, were overcome by the development of recombinant gonadotropin products. The first recombinant human FSH molecules received marketing approvals in 1995 (follitropin alfa) and 1996 (follitropin beta). These had superior purity and a more homogenous glycosylation pattern compared with urinary or pituitary FSH. Subsequently recombinant versions of LH and hCG have been developed, and biosimilar versions of follitropin alfa have received marketing authorization. More recent developments include a recombinant FSH produced using a human cell line, and a long-acting FSH preparation. These state of the art products are administered subcutaneously via pen injection devices.

[A CASE OF PROSTATE CANCER WITH SECONDARY HYPOGONADISM]

A 70 year-old man underwent contrast CT, which revealed his swollen left inguinal and pelvic lymph nodes. The lymph nodes reduced in size without any treatments in a follow-up examination. In 2013, the lymph nodes enlarged again, and FDG-PET/CT showed high value at the prostate and multiple lymph nodes. The levels of serum PSA was high (PSA=682 ng/ml), therefore he underwent a prostate biopsy in his previous hospital and was diagnosed prostate cancer with metastasis of lymph nodes (cT2cN1M1a). Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) was administered; however, the levels of serum PSA didn't reduce and lymph nodes enlarged further. He was referred to our hospital for further evaluation and treatment. The levels of serum total testosterone before ADT administration at his previous hospital was less than 0.05 ng/ml, which meaned that he had been hypogonadism. Brain MRI revealed a pituitary tumor, and he was diagnosed secondary hypogonadism due to the pituitary tumor. This was thought a rare case of a prostate cancer with secondary hypogonadism which had become castration resistant at the time of diagnosis.

Azoospermia due to spermatogenic failure

This article summarizes the current literature regarding azoospermia caused by spermatogenic failure. The causes and genetic contributions to spermatogenic failure are reviewed. Medical therapies including use of hormonal manipulation, whether guided by a specific abnormality or empiric, to induce spermatogenesis are discussed. The role of surgical therapy, including a discussion of varicocelectomy in men with spermatogenic failure, as well as an in-depth review of surgical sperm retrieval with testicular sperm extraction and microdissection testicular sperm extraction, is provided. Finally, future directions of treatment for men with spermatogenic failure are discussed, namely, stem cell and gene therapy.