Varicocele is a common cause of sperm damage. Some studies showed higher concentration of seminal leukocytes in patients with varicocele. The aim of the study was to evaluate seminal leukocyte subpopulations in patients with varicocele. We enrolled 20 patients with varicocele and 20 age-matched healthy men. Sperm analysis was conducted according to the World Health Organization (WHO) 2010 criteria. We evaluated seminal leukocyte subpopulations and bio-functional sperm parameters by flow cytometry. Patients with varicocele had significantly lower sperm concentration and total number than controls. Regarding seminal leukocyte subpopulations, patients with varicocele had a significantly lower percentage of CD8+ and CD16+ leukocytes and a significantly higher percentage of CD4+ leukocytes than controls. As for bio-functional sperm parameters, we found that patients with varicocele had a significantly lower percentage of alive spermatozoa compared to the control group. These results may explain the increased level of cytokines in the seminal plasma of patients with varicocele.

精索静脉曲张是造成精子损伤的常见原因。一些研究表明精索静脉曲张患者精液白细胞的浓度较高。该研究的目的是评估精索静脉曲张患者精液白细胞亚群。我们招募了20例精索静脉曲张患者和20名年龄匹配的健康男性。根据世界卫生组织（WHO）2010年标准进行精子分析。我们通过流式细胞术评估了精液白细胞亚群和生物功能的精子参数。精索静脉曲张患者的精子浓度和总数明显低于对照组。关于精液白细胞亚群，精索静脉曲张患者的CD8 +和CD16 +白细胞百分比显着低于对照组，而CD4 +白细胞百分比则显着高于对照组。至于生物功能的精子参数，我们发现精索静脉曲张患者的活精子百分比明显低于对照组。这些结果可以解释精索静脉曲张患者精浆中细胞因子水平的升高。