MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Elena Ricci, ScD, PhD
Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico,
Milano
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: The role of alcohol drinking on male fertility is still controversial. A negative association between alcohol intake and semen quality has been suggested by some authors, although other studies did not confirm this finding. We performed a cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from a cohort study on subfertile couples, and found that men with a moderate alcohol intake (4 to 7 units of ethanol per week - 1unit=12.5 grams ) had higher semen volume and sperm total count than men with both lower and higher intake.
Abstainers had a better sperm concentration, but the small size of this group prevented us from drawing any significant conclusions. Alcohol was not associated to sperm motility.
Elena Ricci, ScD, PhD
Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico,
Milano
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: The role of alcohol drinking on male fertility is still controversial. A negative association between alcohol intake and semen quality has been suggested by some authors, although other studies did not confirm this finding. We performed a cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from a cohort study on subfertile couples, and found that men with a moderate alcohol intake (4 to 7 units of ethanol per week - 1unit=12.5 grams ) had higher semen volume and sperm total count than men with both lower and higher intake.
Abstainers had a better sperm concentration, but the small size of this group prevented us from drawing any significant conclusions. Alcohol was not associated to sperm motility.