Combined conventional/antioxidant "Astaxanthin" treatment for male infertility: a double blind, randomized trial.

AIM: To evaluate the treatment of male infertility with a strong natural antioxidant, in addition to conventional treatment. METHODS: Using a double blind, randomized trial design, 30 men with infertility of > or =2 months and female partners with no demonstrable cause of infertility received conventional treatment according to the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO), and either a strong antioxidant Astaxanthin 16 mg/day (AstaCarox, AstaReal AB, Gustavsberg, Sweden) or placebo for 3 months. The effects of treatment on semen parameters, reactive oxygen species (ROS), zona-free hamster oocyte test, serum hormones including testosterone, luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and Inhibin B, and spontaneous or intrauterine insemination (IUI)-induced pregnancies were evaluated. RESULTS: ROS and Inhibin B decreased significantly and sperm linear velocity increased in the Astaxanthin group (n = 11), but not in the placebo group (n = 19). The results of the zona-free hamster oocyte test tended to improve in the Astaxanthin group in contrast with the placebo group, though not reaching statistical significance. The total and per cycle pregnancy rates among the placebo cases (10.5 % and 3.6 %) were lower compared with 54.5 % and 23.1 % respectively in the Astaxanthin group (P = 0.028; P = 0.036). CONCLUSION: Although the present study suggests a positive effect of Astaxanthin on sperm parameters and fertility, the results need to be confirmed in a larger trial before recommending Astaxanthin for the complementary treatment of infertile men.

Testicular volume in relation to hormonal indices of gonadal function in community-dwelling elderly men.

Aging is accompanied by involutional changes in testicular function; limited data suggest a decrease in bilateral testicular volume (BTV). We studied BTV by ultrasonography in relation to serum gonadal hormones in 115 healthy elderly men (median age, 78 yr) and 42 young men (median age, 26.5 yr). Elderly men had a clearly smaller BTV (mean, 20.6 vs. 29.7 ml; P < 0.001), whereas serum inhibin B was slightly but significantly decreased (mean, 176.8 vs. 212.8 ng/liter; P = 0.04); lower values in the elderly were observed for bioavailable (Bio) testosterone (T), Bio 17 beta-estradiol, inhibin B/FSH (mean, 18 vs. 58 ng/mU; P < 0.001), and T/LH ratios. In the elderly and the young, respectively, BTV was associated with inhibin B (r = 0.53, P < 0.001; r = 0.41, P < 0.01), FSH (r = -0.53, P < 0.001; r = -0.48, P < 0.01), and inhibin B/FSH ratio. Only in the old men was BTV significantly associated with LH (r = -0.32; P < 0.001), Bio T (r = 0.26; P < 0.01), and T/LH (r = 0.48; P < 0.001). In a multivariate analysis, FSH, inhibin B, and Bio T were independently associated with BTV in the elderly (R(2) = 0.34). Receiver operating characteristics curve analysis indicated that BTV at a criterion value of 14.3 ml had a sensitivity of 46% and a specificity of 79% to predict low serum Bio T levels in the elderly. In conclusion, the moderately decreased BTV observed in elderly men, strongly associated with a decrease of the inhibin B/FSH ratio, is consistent with a reduced Sertoli cell mass, compensated by increased FSH stimulation resulting in only limited decrease of Sertoli cell function. Finding of a low testicular volume in elderly men can contribute to the diagnosis of hypogonadism, but this criterion has low sensitivity to detect decreased T production.