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For
men with low sperm counts, sexual abstinence -- but only
for a day
-- increases semen
quality. More prolonged
sexual abstinence may actually reduce sperm numbers, a
new study indicates. "After only two days of abstinence, sperm
from patients with male factor infertility initiate a process
of quality degradation," Dr. Eliahu Levitas of Soroka University
Medical Center in Beer-Sheva, Israel, and colleagues report.
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June 22, 2005
The findings are important for men trying to father children
through in vitro fertilization, or even through the natural
method.
Levitas and his team note in the medical journal
Fertility and Sterility and Sterility that most fertility
clinics likely follow World Health Organization recommendations,
which advise men to abstain for 2 to 7 days before semen
collection for fertility evaluation. The researchers conducted
the current study to determine the effect of abstinence on
sperm quality.
The researchers analyzed 9489 semen samples
from 6008 men, comparing the concentration of sperm, percentage
of normal sperm, percentage of motile sperm, and volume of
semen, to the duration of abstinence before sperm collection.
Among the 3506 samples classified as being low sperm counts,
peak sperm concentration occurred after 1 day of abstinence
and declined thereafter.
Peak sperm motility also was seen
after 1 day of abstinence, followed by a gradual decline.
The percentage of normal sperm also peaked at 1 to 2 days
of abstinence for low-count men.
Samples with normal sperm
counts showed a slight decline in sperm concentration during
2 days of abstinence, followed by a gradual increase to a
peak on days 6 and 7. Sperm motility increased after 1 day
of abstinence, and remained high through day 7.
Levitas and
colleagues conclude that semen should be collected from men
with male factor infertility after 1 day of abstinence, for
optimum sperm quality.
Seven days of abstinence will improve
sperm quality among men with normal semen, the researchers
add, but abstinence beyond 10 days is not recommended.
SOURCE: Fertility and Sterility, June 2005.
Copyright © 2005 Reuters
Limited.
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Infertility