Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Jul;61(4):355-371.
doi: 10.4111/icu.2020.61.4.355. Epub 2020 Jun 8.

Clinical correlation among male infertility and overall male health: A systematic review of the literature

Francesco Del Giudice  1   2 , Alex M Kasman  2 , Matteo Ferro  3 , Alessandro Sciarra  1 , Ettore De Berardinis  1 , Federico Belladelli  2   4 , Andrea Salonia  4 , Michael L Eisenberg  2   5
Affiliations

Clinical correlation among male infertility and overall male health: A systematic review of the literature

Francesco Del Giudice et al. Investig Clin Urol. 2020 Jul.

Abstract

Purpose: Ongoing evidence has suggested the role of male factor infertility as a potential predictor of mortality and general health status. The aim of the present review is to update the current knowledge base regarding the association between male factor infertility and general health through a critical review of the literature.

Materials and methods: A systematic review of the literature was carried out from inception to November 2019 in order to evaluate significant associations between male infertility and adverse health outcomes such as cardiovascular, oncologic, metabolic and autoimmune diseases as well as overall mortality.

Results: In all, 27 studies met inclusion criteria and were critically examined. Five studies examined male infertility and cardiovascular disease risk, 11 examined oncologic risk (e.g., overall cancer risk, testis and prostate cancer), 8 examined aggregate chronic medical diseases and 5 infertility related to incidence of mortality, for a total of 599,807 men diagnosed with any male factor infertility covering a period from 1916 to 2016.

Conclusions: A man's fertility and overall health appear to be interconnected. Therefore, a diagnosis of male infertility may allow a window into future comorbidity and/or mortality which may help guide clinical decisions and counseling. Several possible etiologies such as genetic, epigenetic, developmental, and lifestyle-based factors need to be further evaluated in order to establish the underlying mechanisms between male infertility and health.

Keywords: Androgens; Health; Hypogonadism; Infertility, male; Mortality.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST: The authors have nothing to disclose.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) flow diagram.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Thoma ME, McLain AC, Louis JF, King RB, Trumble AC, Sundaram R, et al. Prevalence of infertility in the United States as estimated by the current duration approach and a traditional constructed approach. Fertil Steril. 2013;99:1324–1331.e1. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Louis JF, Thoma ME, Sørensen DN, McLain AC, King RB, Sundaram R, et al. The prevalence of couple infertility in the United States from a male perspective: evidence from a nationally representative sample. Andrology. 2013;1:741–748. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Brugh VM, 3rd, Lipshultz LI. Male factor infertility: evaluation and management. Med Clin North Am. 2004;88:367–385. - PubMed
    1. Ventimiglia E, Ippolito S, Capogrosso P, Pederzoli F, Cazzaniga W, Boeri L, et al. Primary, secondary and compensated hypogonadism: a novel risk stratification for infertile men. Andrology. 2017;5:505–510. - PubMed
    1. Glazer CH, Bonde JP, Eisenberg ML, Giwercman A, Hærvig KK, Rimborg S, et al. Male infertility and risk of nonmalignant chronic diseases: a systematic review of the epidemiological evidence. Semin Reprod Med. 2017;35:282–290. - PubMed

Publication types