COVID-19 is harming the sperm of patients, even weeks after recovery, Israeli doctors have concluded, raising concerns that the disease could reduce fertility.
“Men who had the mild disease had a broadly normal sperm quality,” Prof. Dan Aderka of Sheba Medical Center, told The Times of Israel this week. “But those who had the disease in moderate or serious form often didn’t, even after recovery.
“These men had a reduction of around 50% on average of the number of sperm per milliliter, total volume of ejaculate, and motility of sperm,” he said. This figure reflects testing that was carried out around a month after diagnosis.
Aderka, a Tel Aviv University professor, said he is concerned that a minority of men who had COVID-19 could face fertility problems or even “permanent sterility.” But he said that doctors need to monitor sperm of recovered patients for months to find out more — which is what he is planning to do. READ MORE
