Inflammatory Arthritis During Reproductive Age Could Impair Male Fertility

Inflammatory arthritis is linked to some sexual dysfunction and reproductive health issues in men. It can lower fertility rates, higher rates of involuntary childlessness, and fertility problems.

Highlights:

Inflammatory arthritis curbs male fertility rate
Men with inflammatory arthritis before the age of 30 have significantly fewer children
Drugs and psychosocial factors related to arthritis could be the reason behind these problems

Inflammatory arthritis diagnosed before and during the peak of reproductive age could impair fertility in men.

New research published in the journal Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases highlights that increased awareness and more research into the causes behind this association are urgently needed.

Quiz on Arthritis
Do you know that there are more than 100 types of arthritis? If you think that only old people suffer from arthritis, take this intriguing quiz to get your facts on arthritis.

‘Inflammatory arthritis around the 30s can cause fertility problems in men. Psychosocial factors and arthritis medications could be the reasons behind lower fertility rates and higher rates of involuntary childlessness among men.’
Read More..

What Are The Links Between Inflammatory Arthritis And Reproductive Problems In Men?

Inflammatory arthritis (IA) is a type of joint inflammation caused by an overactive immune system. It includes rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis.

Studies have shown that this inflammatory condition is associated with sexual dysfunction and reproductive health issues like male Infertility, erectile dysfunction, insufficient testosterone, and sperm production. The impact of inflammatory arthritis (IA) on male fertility remains unexplored.

About Male Infertility
Encyclopedia section of medindia briefs you about the Genetics of Male Infertility

What Does This Study Add?

To explore the link between inflammatory arthritis (IA) and male infertility, the team conducted a multicentre cross-sectional study in eight Dutch hospitals across the Netherlands. Based on the age at which IA is diagnosed, the participants they divided participants into three study groups:

Group-1: Diagnosed with IA before the peak of reproductive age (≤30 years)
Group-2: Diagnosed with IA during the peak of reproductive age (between 31 and 40 years)
Group-3: Diagnosed with IA after the peak reproductive age (≥41 years)

A self-reported questionnaire that is designed based on the ‘fertility experiences questionnaire (FEQ)’ was answered by all the participants enrolled in this study. It contained four sections: general demographic information, medical history, family planning, and fertility outcomes.

After adjusting for potentially influential factors, including current age, educational attainment, history of cardiovascular disease, a partner’s infertility, researchers found that

Men diagnosed with IA before the age of 30 had significantly fewer children than men in the two other age groups
About 12% of men from group-1 had involuntary childlessness, whereas 10% and 4% of men from group-2 and group-3 had the same condition

Quiz on Male Infertility
Infertility affects 1 in 6 couples who are trying to conceive. In about 50% of these cases, male infertility is a major contributing factor.

Many disorders and factors could contribute towards male infertility and treatment pattern may vary in several cases. However, in many instances treatment may also not work at all. Infertility may be attributed to testicular damage and thereby affecting its ability to produce sperm. In such cases, testicles may not gain its usual sperm-making ability back and thus can't be treated. Other than testicular damage, prime causes of male infertility are less sperm production and poor sperm quality.

What Could be the Reason Behind this?

The team suggests two possible causes behind this. The first one is arthritis drugs that cause side effects like hypogonadism (sex glands produce little or no sex hormones) and poor sperm quality. It has been estimated 1 in 10 who take these drugs are associated with impaired fertility.

They also opine that several psychosocial factors associated with the diagnosis of this condition might also impact the fertility rate of men.

“Due to problems or concerns associated with [the diagnosis] and its treatment and based on medical advice (or the lack of it), men with [inflammatory arthritis] and their partners decided to become voluntarily childless or to delay their plans to become parents. These psychosocial factors were of special importance for men diagnosed before the peak of reproductive age,” highlights the team.

References :

Perez-Garcia LF, Röder E, Goekoop RJ, Hazes JMW, Kok MR, Smeele HTW, Tchetverikov I, van der Helm-van Mil AHM, van der Kaap JH, Kok P, Krijthe BP, Dolhain RJEM. Impaired fertility in men diagnosed with inflammatory arthritis: results of a large multicentre study (iFAME-Fertility). Ann Rheum Dis. 2021 Aug 9:annrheumdis-2021-220709. doi: 10.1136/annrheumdis-2021-220709. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34373257.
Inflammatory Arthritis - (https://www.hss.edu/condition-list_inflammatory-arthritis.asp)

Source-Medindia

Yoga Could be Used as an Adjunct Therapy for Arthritis
Yoga helps keep the body active. Practicing yoga could also help alleviate Rheumatoid arthritis, says an AIIMS expert.