Covid infection can temporarily reduce male fertility — study

Covid-19 vaccination does not affect your chances of conceiving a child but an infection with the virus can temporarily reduce male fertility, a study of 2,000 couples has found.

Researchers at Boston University found no differences in the chances of conception if either male or female partner had been vaccinated, compared with unvaccinated couples. However, couples had a slightly lower chance of conception if the male partner had been infected with Covid-19 within 60 days before a menstrual cycle, suggesting the virus could temporarily reduce male fertility.

Health experts said the findings, which are published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, blunt one of the key myths driving vaccine hesitancy in the US and elsewhere: that Covid-19 vaccinations can affect fertility.

“The findings provide reassurance that vaccination for couples seeking pregnancy does not appear to impair fertility,” said Dr Diana Bianchi, director of NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, which funded the study.

Overall, testing positive for a Covid-19 infection was not associated with a difference in conception. However, couples in which the male partner had tested positive within 60 days of a given cycle were 18 per cent less likely to conceive in that cycle.

There was no difference in conception rates for couples where the male partner had tested positive more than 60 days before a cycle, compared with couples in which the male partner had not tested positive, according to the study.

Researchers said the temporary reduction in fertility may be caused by fever, which is common during a Covid-19 infection and is known to reduce sperm count. Other possible reasons for a decline in fertility among male partners who recently tested positive could be inflammation in the testes and nearby tissues and erectile dysfunction, all common after Covid-19 infection, they said.

Ref: Covid infection can temporarily reduce male fertility — study (financial times)