Effects of metabolic syndrome on semen parameters and reproductive hormones in male infertility patients: a retrospective study in 1564 Chinese men

Abstract Objective This study was designed to investigate the effect of metabolic syndrome on semen parameters and reproductive hormones profile in Chinese infertile patients. Methods 1564 patients who were diagnosed as primary infertility in our hospital from September 2018 to February 2022 were enrolled in this study, and they were divided into MetS group and non-MetS group. 60 healthy men were enrolled as the control group. The general information, blood lipids, reproductive hormones and sperm parameters were collected.The Mann-Whitney U test, the analysis of ANCOVA and Logistic regression analysis were used to analyze the relationships between the different parameters. Results There were 166 patients with MetS in 1564 primary infertility patients, with a prevalence rate of 10.6%. Compared with non-MetS infertility patients, the patients in MetS group had higher FSH, lower T, SHBG, inhibin B and normal sperm morphology rate(P < 0.05). There was no significant difference of sperm concentration and motility between the MetS and non-MetS groups (P > 0.05). MetS and non-MetS azoospemic infertile only differed in FSH levels (P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis of covariance showed that waist circumference,HDL and TG had an influence on sperm morphology (P < 0.05). Logistic regression analysis failed to prove MetS to be an independent risk factor of sperm morphology, but showed that FSH, inhibin B and BMI are independent predictors of sperm concentration (P < 0.05). Patients with increased age,FSH,BMI or lower inhibin B had lower sperm concentration. Conclusions MetS can affect reproductive hormone profile. MetS could be a potential contributing factor to male infertility.