Comparing the sperm concentration determined by the Makler and the Neubauer chambers

Objective: The aim of this work was to determine the concordance between the counts obtained with the Makler and the Neubauer chambers in ejaculates from fertile men. Design: Cross sectional study in Reproduction Group, University of Antioquia, Medellin-Colombia. Methods: 112 ejaculates from fertile men were analyzed in the present study. Sperm count was determined using both chambers, the comparisons between chambers were determined using a Bland-Altman plot. Results: The means values for sperm count were 107.8 and 106.2 x 10(6) sperm/mL using the Makler and the Neubauer chamber, respectively, and there was concordance between both methods. Conclusion: Our results show that the determination of sperm concentration with the Makler chamber is as accurate as with the Neubauer chamber and that either chamber can be used in routine semen analyses.