Kemal Gumus, Serdar Toksoz, Gökce Guven Acik, Burak Koseoglu, Numan Yikilmaz, Ilturk Ozdogan
Urology Clinic, Sbu Sincan Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
Biochemistry, General Directorate of Public Health, Ankara, Turkey.
Int Urol Nephrol. 2025 Apr 30. doi: 10.1007/s11255-025-04524-z.
There is no research explaining the relationship between thalassemia minor and male infertility.
The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between male infertility and hematological parameters in patients with thalassemia minor.
The patients who were identified as thalassemia carriers during premarital thalassemia screening tests performed at the Public Health Laboratory between 2021 and 2023 were evaluated. The patients with normal semen parameters were assigned to the first group, while those with abnormal semen parameters (oligozoospermia, asthenozoospermia, teratozoospermia, and azoospermia) comprised the second group. The hematologic parameters and hormonal parameters values were examined.
The mean age of the patients was 31 (21-43) years. A total of 49 patients with thalassemia minor were included in the study. Of these, 39 had abnormal semen parameters and 10 had normal semen parameters. Among the patients, 8 (16%) had azoospermia, 6 (12%) had oligozoospermia, 9 (18%) had teratozoospermia, and 16 (32%) had asthenozoospermia. The Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin Concentration (MCHC) values were significantly lower in patients with abnormal semen parameters (p = 0.01). According to the regression analysis, Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV) increased the likelihood of deteriorating semen parameters by 0.88-fold, while MCHC increased it by 2.64-fold.
Deterioration in sperm parameters was observed in men with thalassemia minor, and hematological parameters-particularly MCHC and MCV-were identified as potential risk factors for infertility. These findings underscore the importance of considering hematological parameters when evaluating fertility in men with thalassemia minor. Infertility is multifactorial and other mechanisms such as oxidative stress and inflammation should also be evaluated.
尚无研究解释轻度地中海贫血与男性不育之间的关系。
本研究旨在探讨轻度地中海贫血患者男性不育与血液学参数之间的关系。
对2021年至2023年在公共卫生实验室进行的婚前地中海贫血筛查试验中被确定为地中海贫血携带者的患者进行评估。精液参数正常的患者被分配到第一组，而精液参数异常（少精子症、弱精子症、畸形精子症和无精子症）的患者组成第二组。检查血液学参数和激素参数值。
患者的平均年龄为31（21 - 43）岁。共有49例轻度地中海贫血患者纳入研究。其中，39例精液参数异常，10例精液参数正常。患者中，8例（16%）有无精子症，6例（12%）有少精子症，9例（18%）有畸形精子症，16例（32%）有弱精子症。精液参数异常患者的平均红细胞血红蛋白浓度（MCHC）值显著较低（p = 0.01）。根据回归分析，平均红细胞体积（MCV）使精液参数恶化的可能性增加0.88倍，而MCHC使其增加2.64倍。
在轻度地中海贫血男性中观察到精子参数恶化，血液学参数——特别是MCHC和MCV——被确定为不育的潜在危险因素。这些发现强调了在评估轻度地中海贫血男性生育能力时考虑血液学参数的重要性。不育是多因素的，还应评估氧化应激和炎症等其他机制。
