FAQs
Have questions about male fertility, semen analysis, or andrology treatments? Our Frequently Asked Questions provide easy-to-understand answers about testing, results, and what to expect at your appointment.
Acorn Andrology provides a user-friendly booking system with evening & weekend appointments – making your day easier.
Reports are guaranteed same-day.
We have a small and friendly team within a discreet location and private clinic. Our transparent and clear pricing means you know exactly what you are paying for.
A semen analysis is a useful assessment for anyone who is planning to have children in the future or is trying for a baby now.
The Essential Analysis is based on the current WHO (World Health Organisation) 6th Edition guidelines and will pick up any obvious issues. This package is also suitable for those curious about their semen quality and for those wanting a second opinion, confirmation of a successful vasectomy procedure or for those who have confirmed or suspected Retrograde Ejaculation or Azoospermia (no sperm).
Male infertility affects around half of couples having difficulty conceiving. The Trying package is a useful place to start if you are currently experiencing difficulty conceiving and are undergoing fertility investigations or have been trying to conceive for over one year.
It includes every test currently on the market for male fertility patients, including a DNA Fragmentation Test.
The cost for the Essential Analysis is £189, and the Trying package is £405 – payable in full at the time of booking.
Abstinence is the time since the last ejaculation, usually calculated in days, not hours. We highly recommend no less than two days of abstinence and no more than seven days of abstinence prior to an analysis, optimally between three and five days. For DNA Fragmentation testing only 2-3 days of abstinence is necessary.
Patients producing their sample on site will be free to leave as soon as their sample is complete. If you are bringing your sample to the clinic at your appointment time, you will be asked a few routine questions and then you'll be free to leave. Appointments are 40 minutes long and are staggered to allow everyone time to produce a sample and arrive/leave discreetly. For this reason, we ask everyone to please arrive in a timely manner.
After your sample is analysed by the Andrologist, your results will be reviewed by a Clinical Embryologist and sent to you by encrypted email on the same day as your sample submission. Please ensure we have your correct email address on file.
Yes, we encourage you to discuss the findings of your report with your GP or Fertility Consultant, as they have access to your full medical history and will be able to offer you specific clinical advice relevant to your circumstances. Please be aware that if you undergo fertility treatment at another centre, they may require you to have a semen analysis at their clinic.
All samples are disposed of immediately after analysis in the appropriate clinical waste bins, unless you have consented to surplus sample being used for training or testing our consumables. We are not a HFEA regulated centre, and therefore do not have the licence to store or use your gametes.
The payment for your appointment is taken at the point of booking, and is non-refundable if you fail to turn up to your appointment or give us inadequate notice. We understand that circumstances may change, so if you need to re-arrange your appointment for any reason then please notify us as quickly as possible; failure to do this may result in your appointment being cancelled, for which you will not be refunded. If you have not been able to produce your sample on the day, the receptionist will re-book the appointment so that you can attempt to produce the sample at home another time.
No. If producing your sample at home, you'll need to come to the clinic to collect a sample collection pot.
All results will be sent via encrypted email, unless you specifically request a hard copy to be posted to your home address.
Depending on the findings of your report, there are usually lifestyle changes you can make which will have a positive effect on your sperm. There are many factors which can affect sperm quality including diet, alcohol consumption, smoking, and illness – if your results could be improved, we will suggest a suitable lifestyle changes.
The lifecycle of sperm is three months, so following any changes in lifestyle or overcoming illness, we recommend having a repeat analysis performed after three months to check for any improvement.
No children are allowed on premises. The premises does not allow anyone other than you into the production room, however, if you need to be accompanied or a translator to attend, they can wait in the waiting room whilst you produce the sample. If you think you need someone else's help producing a sample, we suggest you contact us at hello@acornandrology.co.uk where we can arrange an ‘at home’ production or in certain circumstances a sperm-safe condom.
We're happy to answer any queries you have. Reach out to us at: hello@acornandrology.co.uk
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