Effect of Warm Water Bathe on the Testes and Sperm Quality of Adult Wistar Rats

Hot water bathe is both therapeutic and habitual. Studies have shown that the testis functions optimally at temperatures slightly below body temperature. This study is designed to evaluate the effect of regular warm water bath on the histoarchitecture of the testis and the sperm quality in Wistar rats. Twenty rats were divided into four groups of five rats each based on closeness of body weight. Rats were soaked fully (except head and neck) inside water of varying temperatures. The control group A was soaked in normal water at room temperature. The other rats in groups B, C and D were exposed to warm water at 30oC, 35oC and 40oC respectively for 10 minutes every day for 14 days. Twenty four hours after the last exposure, the animals were weighed and sacrificed using chloroform sedation. The semen was extracted from the tail end of the epididymis for analysis of sperm quality while the testes were fixed in 10% formal saline for histological studies. Data was analyzed using the SPSS (version 21). Results obtained were expressed as Mean ± SD in each group. Tested parameters were subjected to one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and differences between means were regarded significant at P<0.05

The findings of the present study showed that warm water bath at 30⁰C and 35⁰C did not cause reduction in sperm count or rat weight. However, at 40OC spermatogenesis was adversely affected.