COVID-19 could affect fertility and cause male sexual dysfunction

COVID-19 can negatively impact fertility, especially in men. Components of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system are essential in various testicular functions, this being one of the non-respiratory organs with the highest expression of the angiotensin converting enzyme. The enzyme acts as the primary host receptor for COVID-19.

Because of this, experts from different hospitals in Murcia published a study in the journal Nefrología whose main objective is to analyze the influence of COVID-19 on the male and female reproductive systems to examine whether the mechanisms of the virus produce infertility.

What’s more, a new vaccine safety study has shown that Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines do not harm the male reproductive system. So that’s another reason to get vaccinated: to preserve male fertility and sexual function.

The latest research from professionals at the University of Miami has shed new light on the questions surrounding the fertility disorders that the coronavirus can cause.

The team, in charge of Ranjith Ramasamy, director of the Reproductive Urology program at the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine, discovered far-reaching potential implications for men of all ages, including younger and older men. way who want children.

In their work, the scientific team analyzed autopsy tissue from the testes of six men who died from COVID-19 infection.

“The result showed that the COVID-19 virus appeared in the tissues of one of the men, while we detected a decrease in the number of spermatozoa out of three ”, Ramasamy explains.

Another patient who survived COVID-19 had a testicular biopsy about three months after his initial COVID-19 infection cleared. The biopsy showed the coronavirus was still in his testicles.

His team has also discovered that COVID-19 affects the penis. A tissue analysis of this organ from two men who received implants showed the virus to be present seven to nine months after their diagnosis of COVID-19. Both had developed severe erectile dysfunction, possibly because the infection resulted in reduced blood supply to the organ.

In particular, one of the men had only mild symptoms of COVID-19. The other had been hospitalized. “This suggests,” adds Ramasamy, “that even those who have a relatively mild case of the virus may present with erectile dysfunction serious after recovery ”.

These results are not entirely surprising. After all, scientists know that other viruses invade the testes and affect sperm production and fertility. For example, researchers who studied testicular tissue from six patients who died from the SARS-CoV virus in 2006 found that all of them exhibited widespread cell destruction, with little or no sperm.

We also know that mumps virus and Zika can enter the testicles and cause inflammation. Up to 20% of men infected with these viruses will have low sperm production.

The safest: vaccines

Further investigation by the Ramasamy team has brought good news. A study of 45 men published in Jama (the official media of the American Medical Association) showed that mRNA vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna appear safe for the male reproductive system. “This, then,” says Ramasamy, “is another reason to get vaccinated, a way to preserve male fertility and sexual function.”

This is just a first step on how COVID-19 could affect men’s sexual health; the samples were small and studies must continue. Yet for In men who have had COVID-19 and then experienced testicular pain, it is reasonable to consider that the virus has invaded. “The result can be erectile dysfunction,” explains the specialist. These men should see a urologist, ”said Ramasamy.

Specialists at the University of Miami consider that the research presents An urgent public health message regarding COVID-19 vaccines. “For the millions of American men who remain unvaccinated, this may be an argument that allows them to reconsider the consequences if this very aggressive virus finds them,” says Ramasamy.

One of the reasons for the reluctance to get vaccinated is the perception by many that COVID-19 injections could affect male fertility. “Our research shows the opposite. There is no evidence that the vaccine damages a man’s reproductive system. But ignoring the vaccine and contracting COVID-19 could very well do it, ”concludes the specialist.

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