Comprehensive HPV Screening Important in Male Urology, Fertility Clinics

FRIDAY, Aug. 23, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Comprehensive human papillomavirus (HPV) screening, including genotyping, is important in urology and fertility clinics, according to a study published online Aug. 23 in Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology.

Carolina Olivera, Ph.D., from the FOCIS Center of Excellence Centro de Inmunología Clínica de Córdoba in Argentina, and colleagues examined the influence of high-risk HPV (HR-HPV) and low-risk HPV (LR-HPV) urogenital infection on male fertility in a study involving 205 male patients attending a urology clinic. Semen samples were analyzed for HPV; the quality of semen was assessed following World Health Organization guidelines.

The researchers detected HPV in 19 percent of semen samples. HR-HPV infections were more prevalent; the most frequent genotype was HPV-16. No significant alterations in routine sperm quality parameters were seen in association with HR-HPV or LR-HPV. However, significantly higher levels of sperm necrosis were seen in HR-HPV-positive individuals compared with LR-HPV-positive or control individuals, and they had increased proportions of reactive oxygen species-positive spermatozoa. Neither patients infected with HR-HPV nor LR-HPV had significant semen inflammation detected; compared with controls, unexpectedly reduced serum leukocytes and inflammatory cytokines (interleukin 6 and interleukin 1β) were seen in HR-HPV-positive patients.

“A more thorough evaluation, including genotyping, is essential for males seeking care at urology and fertility clinics, since the specific HPV genotype may influence the course of the infection and its consequences on reproductive health,” the authors write.

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