In 2001 Professor Dr. E. Nieschlag, then president of the German Society of Andrology (DGA), initiated QuaDeGA, as an external quality control programme for semen analysis. Initially participation was voluntary. Since the German Federal Medical Board (BÄK) released its Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Spermatology (RiliBÄK) in 2011, participation in a quality control programme is mandatory for all laboratories in Germany.

QuaDeGA has been recognized as an accredited proficiency testing provider according to DIN EN ISO/IEC 17043:2010 since October 2023.

QuaDeGA carries out external quality control trials twice a year. Consisting of two washed and fixed sperm preparations, these samples allow for the estimation of sperm concentration and preparation and staining of a smear for the assessment of morphologically normal forms. Film sequences of two different native semen samples are provided on the QuaDeGA platform for analysis of sperm motility.

Analyses should follow the guidelines set out in the WHO Laboratory Manual for the Examination and Processing of Human Semen, 5th edition

http://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/publications/infertility/9789241547789/en/

The manual is also available in German.