Editorial comment

摘要

Editorial Comment; Because of its low cost, clinicians often use follicle-stimulating hormone rather than the inhibin B assay to gauge spermatogenesis. Previous studies demonstrated that the 2 assays are highly if not completely correlated. This large study replicates those findings. The investigators also interestingly assessed the ability of inhibin B to predict success of testicular sperm extraction and generated a logarithmic function correlating inhibin level to extraction success. The authors note that no sperm retrieval is predicted at inhibin B levels less than 20 ng/L, a rare but perhaps occasionally useful finding. Other notable aspects of this study include an observed relationship between age, FSH and inhibin B, suggesting that these endocrine assays should be assessed in the context of age when used clinically.