Potential sperm donors should be tested for HPV
CMAJ 2000;163(3):324
Semen from potential sperm donors should be screened routinely for human papillomavirus (HPV), the virus that causes genital warts and cervical cancer, say Canadian researchers. They are sounding the alarm in light of research showing that the virus can be present even in men with no history of infection and no lesions on their penises, contrary to previous thinking.
In a study involving 85 subjects, University of Saskatchewan researchers detected the virus in sperm samples of 53% of men with past or current infection and in 8% of samples from healthy subjects who had no history of infection. The findings were presented at the recent annual meeting of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in San Francisco.
Using polymerase chain reaction testing, the researchers also found HPV DNA in the sperm of 11% of men with a history of lesions on their penises, but no visible lesions at the time the test was done, compared with 66% of men who had detectable lesions. The 45 HPV-positive volunteers in the study group had previous or existing lesions, while the control group comprised 40 sperm donors with no signs or history of the disease. The study's findings have generated considerable attention within the medical community, because previously it was thought that HPV was present only in men with genital lesions.
"Clearly, we should be checking for HPV in prospective sperm donors," says Dr. Roger Pierson, with the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences in the University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine. "By excluding those with positive tests, we can prevent transmitting the disease to uninfected sperm recipients." Extrapolating the findings from this small population to all sexually active men, adds Pierson, would suggest it is not only women receiving sperm donations who are at risk of infection.
The researchers also found that standard sperm-washing procedures failed to remove the virus from semen samples. — Greg Basky, Saskatoon
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