Cared For As Such

An Anonymous left a comment last week asking if the reports were true regarding the COVID-19 and men's fertility. I am happy to say that the initial report out of China has been removed from the web.

Here's what an article in BioNews had to say about the situation:

The initial report, "which was published on the Hubei government's website and widely shared on Chinese social media before being retracted, claimed that men who had contracted and recovered from the disease should seek medical advice to determine whether the virus had affected their fertility."

That report was based on past fertility issues in patients of the SARS virus - which is also a type of coronavirus. In speaking to "Newsweek, Professor Allan Pacey, a leading expert in male fertility at the University of Sheffield, emphasised that the article is a 'short discussion' paper that has not been peer-reviewed and 'highly theoretical.'

'It is intended to alert the medical and scientific community to the possible impact COVID-19 may have on the male reproductive system,' he said.

If you might be trying to father children, it might be a good idea to have a simple semen analysis. "Those who have tested positive for the coronavirus and concerned about their fertility should discuss this with their family doctor, Professor Pacey suggested. Men can have a 'relatively simple' semen analysis three months after infection. [bold is mine]

The tests may be more valuable for experts looking at the potential link between coronavirus and male fertility on a population-wide scale."

Many things can have an effect of male fertility. The male apparatus is a highly complex system.

It should be cared for as such.