Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2017 Nov 9;17(1):714.
doi: 10.1186/s12879-017-2812-z.

Human papillomavirus in semen and the risk for male infertility: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Zhangyan Lyu  1 , Xiaoshuang Feng  1 , Ni Li  1 , Wei Zhao  2 , Luopei Wei  1 , Yuheng Chen  1 , Wenjing Yang  1 , Hongxia Ma  3   4 , Bing Yao  2 , Kai Zhang  5 , Zhibin Hu  3   4 , Hongbing Shen  3   4 , Dong Hang  6 , Min Dai  7
Affiliations
Review

Human papillomavirus in semen and the risk for male infertility: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Zhangyan Lyu et al. BMC Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most prevalent sexually transmitted viruses. Despite the increasing evidence of HPV prevalence in semen, the worldwide distribution of HPV types in semen and risk for male infertility remain inconclusive.

Methods: Four electronic databases were searched for English language studies conducted between January 1990 and December 2016 that reported HPV DNA prevalence in semen. Based on the PRISMA guidelines, HPV prevalence was estimated among general population and fertility clinic attendees, respectively, and heterogeneity testing was performed using Cochran's Q and I 2 statistics. The association between HPV positivity and male infertility was evaluated by a meta-analysis of case-control studies.

Results: A total of 31 eligible studies comprising 5194 males were included. The overall prevalence of HPV DNA in semen was 11.4% (95% CI = 7.8-15.0%) in general population (n = 2122) and 20.4% (95% CI = 16.2-24.6%) in fertility clinic attendees (n = 3072). High-risk type prevalence was 10.0% (95% CI = 5.9-14.0%) and 15.5% (95% CI = 11.4-19.7%), respectively. HPV16 was the most common type, with a prevalence of 4.8% (95% CI = 1.7-7.8%) in general population and 6.0% (95% CI = 3.8-8.2%) in fertility clinic attendees. A significantly increased risk of infertility was found for males with HPV positivity in semen (OR = 2.93, 95% CI = 2.03-4.24).

Conclusions: Seminal HPV infection is common worldwide, which may contribute to the risk of male infertility.

Keywords: Human papillomavirus; Infertility; Meta-analysis; Prevalence; Semen.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Not applicable.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow Diagram of the Search Strategy and Exclusion Criteria
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Forest plots with odds ratios (ORs) of male infertility for HPV seminal infection
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Agarwal A, Mulgund A, Hamada A, Chyatte MR. A unique view on male infertility around the globe. Reprod Biol Endocrinol. 2015;13:37. doi: 10.1186/s12958-015-0032-1. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Krausz C. Male infertility: pathogenesis and clinical diagnosis. Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2011;25(2):271–285. doi: 10.1016/j.beem.2010.08.006. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Gizzo S, Ferrari B, Noventa M, Ferrari E, Patrelli TS, Gangemi M, Nardelli GB. Male and couple fertility impairment due to HPV-DNA sperm infection: update on molecular mechanism and clinical impact--systematic review. Biomed Res Int. 2014;2014:230263. - PMC - PubMed
    1. de Villiers EM. Cross-roads in the classification of papillomaviruses. Virology. 2013;445(1-2):2–10. doi: 10.1016/j.virol.2013.04.023. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bouvard V, Baan R, Straif K, Grosse Y, Secretan B, Ghissassi FE, Benbrahim-Tallaa L, Guha N, Freeman C, Galichet L. A review of human carcinogens—part B: biological agents. Lancet Oncol. 2009;10(4):321–322. doi: 10.1016/S1470-2045(09)70096-8. - DOI - PubMed