Urol. praxi. 2018;19(4):181-184 | DOI: 10.36290/uro.2018.083

Multiple sclerosis and male infertility

doc. MUDr. Jozef Marenčák, PhD.

Bratislava

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a demyelinating disease of unknown etiology that affects the central nervous system – both the brain andthe spinal cord. Male fertility can be compromised in the neurological patient by erectile dysfunction (ED), ejaculation disorder,impaired sperm quality or various combinations of these three disorders. ED can be managed by an increasingly invasive rangeof treatments including medications, injection therapy and the surgical insertion of a penile implant. Retrograde ejaculation ismanaged by medications to reverse the condition in mild cases and in bladder harvest of semen after ejaculation in more severecases. Anejaculation might also be managed by medication in mild cases while assisted ejaculatory techniques including penilevibratory stimulation and electroejaculation are used in more severe cases. In cases where assisted ejaculation fails, sperm canbe retrieved surgically from either the epididymis or from the testis. Once viable sperm cells have been obtained, there are usedin assisted reproductive techniques, including intravaginal insemination, intrauterine insemination, and in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection. Only small research has been performed to evaluate fertility and sperm quality in SM men, sofurther clinical studies and close interdisciplinary collaboration are needed.

Keywords: multiple sclerosis, male infertility, treatment options

Published: October 1, 2018  Show citation