HPV can decrease sperm quantity, quality in men
Men infected with high-risk HPV genotypes show evidence of sperm death from oxidative stress and an impaired immune response: Study
HPV can decrease sperm quantity, quality in men
The latest study focussed on 205 adult males in Argentina who visited a urology clinic for evaluations related to reproductive health or urinary tract problems between 2018 and 2021
New Delhi: Human papillomavirus (HPV), a common sexually transmitted virus, can decrease the sperm quantity and quality in men leading to infertility, a study confirmed on Friday.
Researchers from Universidad Nacional de Cordoba in Argentina showed that men are very susceptible to HPV infections and have major problems such as the increased risk of genital warts and malignancies of the mouth, throat, penis, and anus.
But the top problem is being rendered infertile.
The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, showed that men infected with high-risk HPV genotypes show evidence of sperm death from oxidative stress and an impaired immune response.
The study "demonstrated that genital HPV infection is highly common in men and that, depending on the viral genotype that is causing the infection, the impact on sperm quality and semen inflammation might vary,” said Dr. Virginia Rivero, a professor at the varsity.
“Male fertility and the immune system's capacity to fight off infection seem to be more negatively impacted by high-risk HPV genotype infections,” Rivero added.
HPV infections had been most common among women, leading to cervical cancer risk in 95 per cent of cases.
However, a recent study in the journal The Lancet showed that 1 in 3 men over the age of 15 are at least partially infected with genital HPV, and 1 in 5 have some infection with high-risk, or oncogenic, HPV strains.
The latest study focussed on 205 adult males in Argentina who visited a urology clinic for evaluations related to reproductive health or urinary tract problems between 2018 and 2021.
Nobody had received an HPV vaccination. Nineteen percent of the individuals tested positive for HPV, of which twenty men were found to have high-risk HPV (HR-HPV) and seven to have low-risk HPV (LR-HPV).
