Male Reproductive System Supplementary Information

Male Reproductive System Supplementary Information

 

Additional Terms Not Listed in Textbook

 

 

 

Male Reproductive System Information Video

 

 

Areas of Clarification

This chapter focuses on the terms that relate to the Male Reproductive System. This includes combining forms and suffixes that are pertinent to this system.  You will use the prefixes, suffixes, and additional combining forms you have learned in chapters 1-12 and apply them here to create medical terms pertaining to this system.

 

Physiology (Function) of the Male Reproductive System

Spermatogenesis

Spermatogenesis occurs in the seminiferous tubules that form the bulk of each testis. The process begins at puberty, after which time sperm are produced constantly throughout a man’s life. One production cycle takes approximately 64 days. One production cycle is considered  from spermatogonia through to formed sperm. A new cycle starts approximately every 16 days, although this timing is not synchronous across the seminiferous tubules.

 

Sperm

Sperm are smaller than most cells in the body; in fact, the volume of a sperm cell is 85,000 times less than that of the female gamete. Approximately 100 to 300 million sperm are produced each day, whereas women typically ovulate only one oocyte  per month as is true for most cells in the body, the structure of sperm cells speaks to their function. Sperm have a distinctive head, mid-piece, and tail region

 

Sperm Transport

To fertilize an egg, sperm must be moved from the seminiferous tubules in the testes, through the epididymis, and—later during ejaculation—along the length of the penis and out into the female reproductive tract. It takes an average of 12 days for sperm to move through the coils of the epididymis, with the shortest recorded transit time in humans being one day.

 

Conditions/Diseases

Human Papillomavirus- HPV

HPV is another common sexually transmitted infection (STI). Both males and females can be infected with HPV. Around three quarters of sexually active individuals have been exposed to HPV during their lifetime. There are over 100 strains of HPV and some strains of HPV can cause visible genital warts. The warts are usually painless but may be itchy, uncomfortable and hard to treat. Some strains of HPV cause genital, anal, throat and cervical cancers. HPV spreads through sexual activity and skin-to-skin contact in the genital area with an infected person. Since some people are asymptomatic they don’t know they have the virus and consequently pass the virus to their sexual partners. Treatments are available for genital warts but there is no cure for HPV (York Region Health Connect, n.d.). To learn more about HPV symptoms, treatments, and prognosis visit the York Region Fact Sheet (PDF file) on HPV.  Links to an external site.

HPV Vaccine

A vaccine called Gardasil® 9 is available for 9 HPV strains. This vaccine assists the immune system in protecting the body against infections and diseases caused by HPV (York Region Health Connection, n.d.). To learn more about Gardasil® 9 treatments, please visit the Gardasil® 9 website. Links to an external site.