A testicular biopsy (extraction of cells for a test) is often prepared to assess whether any sperm are present within the testes in cases of Azoospermia, the medical condition of a man not having any measurable level of sperm in his semen.

It is a surgical procedure in which we remove a piece of the tissue from the testicle for examination under the microscope. It is done under anaesthesia so it is not painful. It is a procedure people recover from quickly.

Any samples recovered are frozen then. This facilitates any IVF treatment at a later date—all we will have to do is retrieve the frozen sample instead of ask for a new one. Semen freezing is a facility that couples use if the husband is not immediately available at the time of IVF treatment (for example, in the case of working abroad).