Impact of SARS-CoV-2 and Other Upper Respiratory Tract Viral Infections on Reproductive Parameters in Young Healthy Men with Mild Symptoms of Disease
(2023) In Andrologia 2023.- Abstract
Data regarding excretion of SARS-CoV-2 in semen are inconclusive and counseling regarding risk of sexual transmission is still challenging. Our knowledge on the effect of upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) on male reproductive system is also scarce. Apart from negative effect of fever on spermatogenesis virtually no study has been able to compare reproductive parameters in men with COVID-19 or other URTI with predisease data. Eleven men who developed symptoms of URTI during the first and second wave of COVID-19 pandemic and who had preexistent fertility and hormonal data, participated in the study leaving sperm and blood samples. Three additional subjects were recruited among proven SARS-CoV-2 positive male hospital workers... (More)
Data regarding excretion of SARS-CoV-2 in semen are inconclusive and counseling regarding risk of sexual transmission is still challenging. Our knowledge on the effect of upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) on male reproductive system is also scarce. Apart from negative effect of fever on spermatogenesis virtually no study has been able to compare reproductive parameters in men with COVID-19 or other URTI with predisease data. Eleven men who developed symptoms of URTI during the first and second wave of COVID-19 pandemic and who had preexistent fertility and hormonal data, participated in the study leaving sperm and blood samples. Three additional subjects were recruited among proven SARS-CoV-2 positive male hospital workers (without previous data). SARS-CoV-2 RNA was present in the ejaculate from 2 of 5 (40%) young men with mild COVID-19. In one of them viral particles could be detected in the semen sample 2 weeks after the first sampling. Men with any URTI showed higher LH (p=0.02), lower sperm concentration (p=0.047), and free testosterone (p=0.008) when compared to their samples delivered 10 years earlier. When SARS-CoV-2 positive subjects were compared to subjects with other URTIs, no difference in levels of reproductive parameters or inflammatory markers was seen. In conclusion, SARS-CoV-2 RNA can be present in the ejaculate but does not seem to affect reproductive parameters any more than other viruses. However, mild URTI was shown to affect the sperm concentration, LH, and free testosterone negatively.
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- author
- Elenkov, Angel LU ; Nilsson, Anna LU ; Kondic, Alexandra LU ; Bottiger, Blenda ; Broden, Marcus ; Bergman, Ebba ; Dahl, Annie and Giwercman, Aleksander LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2023
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Andrologia
- volume
- 2023
- article number
- 8895384
- publisher
- Wiley-Blackwell
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85176279900
- ISSN
- 0303-4569
- DOI
- 10.1155/2023/8895384
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- additional info
- Publisher Copyright: © 2023 Angel Elenkov et al.
- id
- f36d61e1-4d27-48f9-8d5c-fdd361ad5691
- date added to LUP
- 2024-01-11 10:49:26
- date last changed
- 2024-05-16 13:57:52
@article{f36d61e1-4d27-48f9-8d5c-fdd361ad5691, abstract = {{<p>Data regarding excretion of SARS-CoV-2 in semen are inconclusive and counseling regarding risk of sexual transmission is still challenging. Our knowledge on the effect of upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) on male reproductive system is also scarce. Apart from negative effect of fever on spermatogenesis virtually no study has been able to compare reproductive parameters in men with COVID-19 or other URTI with predisease data. Eleven men who developed symptoms of URTI during the first and second wave of COVID-19 pandemic and who had preexistent fertility and hormonal data, participated in the study leaving sperm and blood samples. Three additional subjects were recruited among proven SARS-CoV-2 positive male hospital workers (without previous data). SARS-CoV-2 RNA was present in the ejaculate from 2 of 5 (40%) young men with mild COVID-19. In one of them viral particles could be detected in the semen sample 2 weeks after the first sampling. Men with any URTI showed higher LH (p=0.02), lower sperm concentration (p=0.047), and free testosterone (p=0.008) when compared to their samples delivered 10 years earlier. When SARS-CoV-2 positive subjects were compared to subjects with other URTIs, no difference in levels of reproductive parameters or inflammatory markers was seen. In conclusion, SARS-CoV-2 RNA can be present in the ejaculate but does not seem to affect reproductive parameters any more than other viruses. However, mild URTI was shown to affect the sperm concentration, LH, and free testosterone negatively.</p>}}, author = {{Elenkov, Angel and Nilsson, Anna and Kondic, Alexandra and Bottiger, Blenda and Broden, Marcus and Bergman, Ebba and Dahl, Annie and Giwercman, Aleksander}}, issn = {{0303-4569}}, language = {{eng}}, publisher = {{Wiley-Blackwell}}, series = {{Andrologia}}, title = {{Impact of SARS-CoV-2 and Other Upper Respiratory Tract Viral Infections on Reproductive Parameters in Young Healthy Men with Mild Symptoms of Disease}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2023/8895384}}, doi = {{10.1155/2023/8895384}}, volume = {{2023}}, year = {{2023}}, }