TY - JOUR
T1 - Impact of Varicocele on Testicular Oxidative Stress and Sperm Parameters in Experimental Animals
T2 - A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
AU - Russo, Giorgio Ivan
AU - Saleh, Ramadan
AU - Finocchi, Federica
AU - Juma, Almas Ramadhani
AU - Durairajanayagam, Damayanthi
AU - Kahraman, Oguzhan
AU - Sögütdelen, Emrullah
AU - Sokolakis, Ioannis
AU - Vishwakarma, Ranjit B.
AU - Bahar, Fahmi
AU - Harraz, Ahmed M.
AU - Kavoussi, Parviz
AU - Atmoko, Widi
AU - Chung, Eric
AU - Kumar, Naveen
AU - Zohdy, Wael
AU - Rambhatla, Amarnath
AU - Arafa, Mohamed
AU - Phuoc, Nguyen Ho Vinh
AU - Salvio, Gianmaria
AU - Calogero, Aldo E.
AU - Toprak, Tuncay
AU - Pinggera, Germar Michael
AU - Cannarella, Rossella
AU - Colpi, Giovanni
AU - Hamoda, Taha Abo Almagd Abdel Meguid
AU - Shah, Rupin
AU - Agarwal, Ashok
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2024 Korean Society for Sexual Medicine and Andrology.
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - Purpose: Varicocele has been associated with high seminal oxidative stress (OS), impaired semen quality, and reduced male fertility potential. However, the exact mechanism(s) underlying the development of varicocele-mediated infertility and the cause-effect relationship between varicocele and testicular dysfunction are not fully understood. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis (SRMA) is to investigate the impact of varicocele on testicular OS markers and sperm parameters in experimental animals with varicocele as compared to animals without varicocele. Materials and Methods: A literature search was performed using the Scopus and PubMed databases on studies that investigated testicular OS markers and sperm parameters in animals with varicocele. The primary outcomes included malondialdehyde (MDA) (nmol/mg) levels whereas the secondary outcomes included total sperm count (×106), sperm vitality (%), total sperm motility (%), and sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) (%). Standardized mean difference (SMD) (95% confidence interval [CI]) was chosen to express the effect size. The quality of the included studies was evaluated using the Cambridge Quality Checklist. Results: Out of 76 identified articles, 6 studies on rats were included in the meta-analysis. The analysis showed a significant increase of MDA (SMD: 15.61 [1.93, 29.29]; p=0.03) in rats with varicocele vs. controls. We also observed a significant decrease in total sperm count (SMD: -17.45 [-28.97, -5.93]; p<0.01), sperm vitality (SMD: -16.41 [-26.30, -6.52]; p<0.01), total sperm motility (SMD: -17.67 [-24.90, -10.44]; p<0.01), and a significant increase of SDF (SMD: 7.41 [1.23, 13.59]; p=0.02), in rats with varicocele vs. controls. The quality of the included studies was ranked as high. Conclusions: This SRMA indicates a significant increase in levels of testicular MDA and SDF and a reduction of sperm quality in experimental animals with varicocele. These findings support the potential role of testicular OS in the development of varicocele-induced testicular damage.
AB - Purpose: Varicocele has been associated with high seminal oxidative stress (OS), impaired semen quality, and reduced male fertility potential. However, the exact mechanism(s) underlying the development of varicocele-mediated infertility and the cause-effect relationship between varicocele and testicular dysfunction are not fully understood. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis (SRMA) is to investigate the impact of varicocele on testicular OS markers and sperm parameters in experimental animals with varicocele as compared to animals without varicocele. Materials and Methods: A literature search was performed using the Scopus and PubMed databases on studies that investigated testicular OS markers and sperm parameters in animals with varicocele. The primary outcomes included malondialdehyde (MDA) (nmol/mg) levels whereas the secondary outcomes included total sperm count (×106), sperm vitality (%), total sperm motility (%), and sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) (%). Standardized mean difference (SMD) (95% confidence interval [CI]) was chosen to express the effect size. The quality of the included studies was evaluated using the Cambridge Quality Checklist. Results: Out of 76 identified articles, 6 studies on rats were included in the meta-analysis. The analysis showed a significant increase of MDA (SMD: 15.61 [1.93, 29.29]; p=0.03) in rats with varicocele vs. controls. We also observed a significant decrease in total sperm count (SMD: -17.45 [-28.97, -5.93]; p<0.01), sperm vitality (SMD: -16.41 [-26.30, -6.52]; p<0.01), total sperm motility (SMD: -17.67 [-24.90, -10.44]; p<0.01), and a significant increase of SDF (SMD: 7.41 [1.23, 13.59]; p=0.02), in rats with varicocele vs. controls. The quality of the included studies was ranked as high. Conclusions: This SRMA indicates a significant increase in levels of testicular MDA and SDF and a reduction of sperm quality in experimental animals with varicocele. These findings support the potential role of testicular OS in the development of varicocele-induced testicular damage.
KW - Infertility
KW - Oxidative stress
KW - Reactive oxygen species
KW - Spermatozoa
KW - Varicocele
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85193415964&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.5534/wjmh.230260
DO - 10.5534/wjmh.230260
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85193415964
SN - 2287-4208
VL - 42
JO - World Journal of Men's Health
JF - World Journal of Men's Health
ER -
