SCIENTISTS have long believed human papillomavirus (HPV) - the most common STI - may be behind some cases of infertility. Up until now, most research into HPV’s impact on fertility has focused on women. But a new study, focussing on the disease's impact on men, has found the high-risk strains carried by one in five men can also affect sperm quality.
The study, published in Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology , found that high-risk HPV can suppress the immune system in the male genital tract. This could hinder the body’s ability to get rid of HPV, a process that usually takes up to a year after infection. Scientists from the National University of Córdoba in Argentina believe this immunity-suppressing factor raises the risk of other diseases that may damage male fertility.
Read more on HPV Study author, Professor Virginia Rivero said: “Individuals often have no symptoms or signs, yet still carry HPV in the male genital tract,” HPV is sexually transmitted but - because it doesn't tend to cause symptoms or problems - most people don't even know they have it. There are about 200 strains of the disease, most of which are harmless and resolve on their own. But some high-risk strains, including HPV16 and HPV18, can cause genital, cervical, head , neck, throat and mouth cancer.
Most read in Health According to a 2023 analysis published in The Lancet Global Health journal, 21 per cent of men aged 15 and over in the UK are infected with at least one high-risk str.