2023-06-26 17:04:00
Fewer and slower sperm counts in men recovered from Covid 19, even more than 3 months after infection. Sars-CoV-2, even if contracted in a mild form, seems to worsen sperm quality in the long term, although any repercussions of this effect on fertility still remain to be clarified. This is what emerges from a Spanish study presented at the 39th Annual Congress of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (Eshre) underway in Copenhagen, Denmark.
After some research according to which the quality of male semen appears compromised in the short term after a Covid infection, Rocio Núñez-Calonge, scientific consultant of the Ur International Group at the Scientific Reproduction Unit in Madrid, wanted to investigate the duration of this ‘damage ‘ which he and his colleagues had also had the opportunity to observe in patients followed by assisted reproduction clinics in Spain. “Since it takes about 78 days to produce new sperm – explains the expert – it seemed appropriate to evaluate its quality at least 3 months after recovery” from Covid. “Our hypothesis was that it would improve” once the ‘sperm pool’ was renewed, “but it did not”, underlines Núñez-Calonge. At the moment, he points out, “we don’t know how long it might take to restore sperm quality” pre-infection, and “permanent damage even in men who have only had a mild infection” cannot be ruled out.
I STUDY
Between February 2020 and October 2022, the authors enrolled 45 men, mean age 31 years, in 6 reproductive clinics in Spain. All had a confirmed diagnosis of mild Covid-19 and the centers had analyzes of sperm samples taken before infection; another sample was taken between 17 and 516 days after infection, with the median time between pre-Covid and post-Covid sampling equal to 238 days. The researchers looked at all samples taken up to 100 days after Covid-19, and a subset were also tested beyond 100 days after. There was a statistically significant difference in semen volume (-20%, from 2.5 to 2 milliliters), sperm concentration (-26.5%, from 68 to 50 million per ml), sperm count ( -37.5%, from 160 to 100 million/ml), in total motility (-9.1%, from 49% to 45%) and in the share of live sperm (-5%, from 80% to 76% ). After Covid, half of the patients had 57% lower total sperm counts than before. And even 100 days after infection, sperm concentration and mobility had not improved.
Núñez-Calonge points out that “the impairment of the” quality index “parameters of the sperm may not be due to a direct effect of the Sars-CoV-2 virus. It is probable that further factors, currently unknown, contribute to the decrease of these long-term parameters”. Furthermore “in this study we did not measure hormone levels” and indeed “intense variations in testosterone, a key player in male reproductive health, have previously been reported in male patients with Covid infection”.
That said, the specialist remarks, “we believe that doctors should be aware of the possible harmful effects of the virus on male fertility”. For Núñez-Calonge “of particular interest is the fact that this drop in sperm quality occurs in patients with mild infection, which means that SARS-CoV-2 could affect male fertility without men showing any clinical symptoms of the disease.” The Spanish team intends to continue monitoring patients over time, assessing both the quality of the semen and their hormonal status. Finally, they urge more research on male reproductive functions after Covid infection, to understand if fertility is temporarily or permanently affected.
Comments the president of Eshre Carlos Calhaz-Jorge, of the Northern Lisbon Hospital Center and the Hospital de Santa Maria of Lisbon in Portugal, who was not involved in the study: “This is an interesting research and shows the importance of long follow-up end of fertility of patients after a Covid-19 infection, even a mild one.However – points out the number one of the European scientific society – it is important to note that the quality of the sperm in these patients after a Covid infection still falls within the normality criteria defined by the World Health Organization. Therefore, it is not clear whether this reduction in sperm quality translates into reduced fertility. This should be the subject of further research.”
#months #sperm #slower