Oxidative stress in normospermic men undergoing infertility evaluation

The purpose of this study was to determine whether normospermic infertile m en have high seminal oxidative stress, using 3 measures of oxidative stress : reactive oxygen species (ROS), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and a co mposite ROS-TAC score. Forty-three normospermic men without leukocytospermi a and 19 healthy donors who came to our infertility clinic were included. P atients were categorized into 3 groups: group I, varicocele and no female f actor (n = 16); group II, positive female factor (n = 16); and group III, i diopathic infertility (n = 11). In addition, 52 treated male factor patient s and 19 donors were included as reference groups. We measured seminal ROS, TAG, and the ROS-TAC score in the patient groups and the controls. Normosp ermic infertile patients as a group had higher ROS levels (mean log [ROS 1] 1.76 +/- 0.13) compared with controls (1.39 +/- 0.16; P = .03). Patients in the idiopathic subgroup had significantly higher ROS levels (2.29 +/- 0 .25; P = .004) than controls. Normospermic infertile patients as a group no t only had reduced TAC levels (970.18 +/- 73.95 Trolox equivalents), but ea ch subgroup also Had significantly lower TAC than controls (1650.93 +/- 95. 87; P < .003). The ROS-TAC scores in all normospermic infertile patients as a group (35.7 +/- 1.8) as well as in each subgroup was significantly reduc ed compared with the ROS-TAC levers in the controls (50.0 +/- 2.1; P < .005 ). We conclude that oxidative stress is associated with mate factor inferti lity. The presence of oxidative stress in infertile normospermic men may ex plain previously unexplained cases of infertility otherwise attributed to f emale factors.