Efecto de la administración de un complejo de antioxidantes en pacientes afectos de astenoteratozoospermia idiopática

Introduction: The male factor is seen in almost 50% of the couples attending a reproductive clinic, and may be a result of a decrease in sperm count (oligozoospermia) or in sperm quality due to mobility defects (asthenozoospermia) or in its morphology (teratozoospermia). There are several studies that related the these sperm quality defects with the presence of sperm DNA fragmentation and suggest the possible beneficial effect of antioxidant treatments, although there is wide disparity in the results obtained. Objectives: We have studied the effect of the administration of an antioxidant complex (Androferti (R) Laboratory Q Pharma) in patients with idiopathic asthenoteratozoospermia in order to contribute to the clarification of the possible beneficial effect of the empirical administration of antioxidants, in the present work. Patients and methods: A total of 69 males in whom the antioxidant treatment was administered at a day dose of 1.5 g for 3 months were included. After completing the treatment, significant improvement was detected in sperm mobility (global mobility a+b improved from 22.04% to 28.95%; p = 0.001) and sperm morphology (the normal forms increased from 9.86 % to 14.78%, p <0.001). Discussion: Numerous publications have reported the beneficial effects of administering antioxidant substances on sperm DNA fragmentation. These effects could be translated into an improvement in semen and embryo quality, in case of pregnancy. Our study is in line with these finding, showing an improvement in most of the seminal parameters resulting from the administration of L-carnitine in association with other antioxidants, a treatment that appears to be particularly effective in younger patients. Conclusions: Our results confirm the beneficial effect of the administration of an antioxidant complex in patients with idiopathic asthenoteratozoospermia, this improving their sperm quality, consequently favoring the desired pregnancy. (C) 2012 Asociacion Espanola de Andrologia, Medicina Sexual y Reproductiva. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L. All rights reserved.