22 Mai 2019

Poor semen quality in Switzerland

The UNIGE researchers conducted the first national study on the quality of Swiss sperm by analysing the profile of 2,523 young men aged 18 to 22 as part of their military recruitment. 

Based on the WHO thresholds established in 2010, the results of the study indicate that 17% of young men had a sperm concentration below 15 million per ml and 25% had less than 40% motile spermatozoa in their ejaculate. The rate of morphologically normal forms was below 4% in 40% of the subjects. The study as a whole revealed that at least one of the three parameters (concentration, motility and morphology) was below the WHO thresholds for 60% of men, and that 5% had a problem concerning these three factors at the same time. “We need to be cautious about a single semen analysis,” points out Dr Alfred Senn, an andrologist and co-author of the study. “It isn’t entirely predictive of a person’s fertility. But, in overall terms, the results suggest that the sperm quality of young men in Switzerland is in a critical state and that their future fertility will in all likelihood be affected.”

See press release and publication