P –004 Effect of varicocelectomy on sperm DNA fragmentation rates in infertile men with clinical varicocele: a systematic review and meta-analysis

AbstractStudy questionDoes varicocelectomy improve sperm DNA quality in men with infertility and clinically detected varicoceles?Summary answerVaricocelectomy reduces sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) rates in infertile men with clinical varicocele.What is known alreadyVaricocele has been linked to male infertility through various non-mutually exclusive mechanisms, including an increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS) production that may lead to sperm DNA damage. Damage to sperm DNA may result in longer time-to-pregnancy, unexplained infertility, recurrent pregnancy loss, and failed intrauterine insemination or in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection. Therefore, interventions aimed at decreasing SDF rates, including varicocele repair, have been explored to improve fertility and pregnancy outcomes potentially, either by natural conception or using medically assisted reproduction.Study design, size, durationSystematic review and meta-analysisParticipants/materials, setting, methodsWe followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Our systematic search included PubMed/Medline, EMBASE, Scielo, and Google Scholar to identify all relevant studies written in English and published from inception until October 2020. Inclusion criteria were studies comparing SDF rates before and after varicocelectomy in infertile men with clinical varicocele. Articles were included if the following SDF assays were utilized: SCSA, TUNEL,...
Source: Human Reproduction - Category: Reproduction Medicine Source Type: research