Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the association between sperm quality assessed by routine semen analysis and sperm DNA integrity assay.Methods: In our cross‐sectional study, a total of 318 men from the infertile couples were enrolled from December 2017 to March 2019 at the Hue Center for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Vietnam. General characteristics and semen parameters were detected. The sperm DNA fragmentation index (DFI) was estimated by the sperm chromatin dispersion (SCD) assay. A threshold of DFI 30% was applied to classify normal (DFI < 30%) or abnormal (DFI ≥ 30%) groups. The correlations between DFI and semen parameters were analyzed by Spearman's rank correlation coefficient.Results: In the correlation analysis, DFI was significantly correlated with abnormal head and progressive motility, with a positive correlation with abnormal head (ρ = .202, P = .0003) and a weak negative correlation with progressive motility (ρ = −.168, P = .0027), respectively. In the bivariate analysis, DFI was associated with male age, smoking, and alcohol consumption with P < .05.Conclusions: The sperm DFI was not strongly correlated with conventional semen parameters. Therefore, a sperm DNA fragmentation assay should be performed as an additional step in the investigation of male fertility.

Objectives: To determine the relationship between maternal serum uric acid levels and fetal/neonatal complications in women with pre‐eclampsia/eclampsia, and to establish a predictive threshold value.Methods: A diagnostic test and historical cohort study conducted by prospective cross‐sectional data collection on pregnant women with pre‐eclampsia/eclampsia at Hue University Hospital, Vietnam, between March 2015 and July 2017. Pre‐eclampsia was diagnosed based on ACOG criteria. Serum uric acid levels were measured by enzymatic colorimetric testing using a Cobas c 501 analyzer (Roche Diagnostics, Mannheim, Germany). Fetal complications included intrauterine growth restriction, preterm delivery, fetal death, and neonatal death.Results: There were 205 women enrolled. Serum uric acid at a cutoff of 393 μmol/L is a good predictor of fetal/neonatal complications (AUC 0.752), with 64.4% sensitivity and 79.5% specificity. High uric acid level (≥393 μmol/L) resulted in increased risk of preterm birth (OR 6.367, 95% CI 3.009–13.084), low Apgar scores (OR 5.514, 95% CI 1.877–16.198), intrauterine growth restriction (OR 7.188, 95% CI 3.592–14.382), and neonatal death (OR 7.818, 95% CI 1.614–37.867). There was no relationship between uric acid level and fetal death (OR 1.803, 95% CI 0.355–9.168).Conclusions: Maternal serum uric acid concentration is a good predictor of fetal/neonatal outcomes in women with pre‐eclampsia/eclampsia.

In the fight against cervical malignancy and its precursors, several adjuvant diagnostic methods have been proposed to increase the accuracy of cytologic and histologic diagnoses. Because chromosomal aneuploidy has been accepted as an early key event in tumorigenesis caused by genetic instability, the cytometric equivalent of chromosomal aneuploidy detected by DNA image cytometry (DNA‐ICM) may serve as a marker of neoplasia. During the last decade, the appearance of a new generation of hardware with high processing and storage capacities, together with the development of appropriate software, has facilitated the development of high‐performance DNA‐ICM systems. International consensus on the clinical application of DNA‐ICM has been reached. According to the statements of Task Force 8 of the International Consensus Conference on the Fight Against Cervical Cancer, indications for DNA‐ICM include the identification of prospectively malignant cells in squamous intraepithelial lesions (SILs) and atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASCUS). The European Society of Analytical Cellular Pathology consensus reports on DNA‐ICM have provided standardized technical details on performance, terms, and algorithms for diagnostic data interpretation and quality‐assurance procedures. Increasing biologic evidence and clinical data have confirmed the utility of DNA‐ICM as an adjuvant method suitable for determining the diagnosis and prognosis of cervical intraepithelial lesions and invasive carcinoma. Patients with ASCUS and low‐grade SIL diagnoses that reveal DNA euploidy may return for normal screening intervals, whereas the detection of DNA aneuploidy indicates that these lesions should be removed. Formerly a research tool, today, standardized DNA‐ICM has become a useful and low‐cost laboratory method to establish objectively and reproducibly an early diagnosis of prospectively progressive cervical intraepithelial lesions at a high‐quality level. DNA‐ICM may further contribute to the monitoring of treatment in patients with invasive cervical malignancies. Cancer (Cancer Cytopathol) 2004;102:41–54. © 2003 American Cancer Society.

Sperm cryopreservation has been widely used in assisted reproductive technology, as it offers great potential for the treatment of some types of male infertility. However, cryopreservation may result in changes in membrane lipid composition and acrosome status, as well as reductions in sperm motility and viability. This study aimed to evaluate sperm DNA fragmentation damage caused by conventional freezing using the sperm chromatin dispersion test. In total, 120 fresh human semen samples were frozen by conventional methods, using SpermFreeze Solution as a cryoprotectant. Routine semen analysis and a Halosperm test (using the Halosperm kit) were performed on each sample before freezing and after thawing. Semen parameters and sperm DNA fragmentation were compared between these groups. There was a significant decrease in sperm progressive motility, viability, and normal morphology after conventional freezing (32.78%, 79.58%, and 3.87% vs. 16%, 55.99%, and 2.55%, respectively). The sperm head, midpiece, and tail defect rate increased slightly after freezing. Furthermore, the DNA fragmentation index (DFI) was significantly higher after thawing than before freezing (19.21% prior to freezing vs. 22.23% after thawing). Significant increases in the DFI after cryopreservation were observed in samples with both normal and abnormal motility and morphology, as well as in those with normal viability. Conventional freezing seems to damage some sperm parameters, in particular causing a reduction in sperm DNA integrity.