Temporal trends of semen quality among male partners of infertile Greek couples undergoing oocyte donation cycles: a retrospective study in a single IVF center

Abstract

Introduction: Temporal global trends of sperm quality remain a matter of debate. It is widely believed that exposure to endocrine disruptors during fetal life can damage testicular function, cause testicular cancer and impair reproduction. Materials and methods: This was a retrospective, cohort study using data from a single IVF center located in Thessaloniki, Greece, during the period 2004-2013; including male partners of infertile Greek women, undergoing oocyte donation treatment for the first time. Local polynomial smoothing was used to assess visually possible trends in the data. One-way ANOVA was used for the comparison of means of variables of interest between years. The Pearson Chi-squared and the Chi-squared test for trend were employed to test for the independence and trend respectively of the occurrence of concentrations <20 million/ml and the year of study. Results: A total of 1113 participants were analyzed. The mean sperm concentration increased significantly between 2004 and 2012 (39.5million/ml versus 59.1million/ml; p<0.001), but without forming a visible upward trend; the mean total motility remained statistically unchanged (56% versus 49.8%; p=0.239), as well as the percentage of sperm concentration of less than 20million/mL (23.5% versus 24.4%; p=0.249), whereas the mean of rapid progressive motile sperm decreased significantly (41.1% versus 30%; p<0.001), forming a visible downward trend. Conclusions: Sperm motility and annual percentage of oligospermic males presenting with a sperm concentration of less than 20 million/mL showed an absence of significant change and temporal trend. Rapid progressive motile sperm deteriorated significantly, revealing a visible time-related downward trend.