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Psychological Stress and Male Infertility

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Male Infertility

Abstract

Quite a few researchers endeavored to establish the relationships between psychological stress and male infertility over the last two decades. Psychological stress is often a natural outcome of male infertility that acts as a stressor in affected persons. The manifestations and effects of psychological stress in males with infertility are diverse and variable. The human psychological stress response often depends on the personality and physical or mental state of a person, which is perhaps genetically determined. Accordingly, the response to infertility differs with individual situation, emotional strength, coping method, race, and religious belief. These effects take different dimensions affecting the emotional and reproductive health.

Emotional effects are often depression, lack of self-esteem, stigma, grief, and isolation. Reproduction could be affected due to loss of libido, erectile, or ejaculatory dysfunction and deterioration of sperm parameters. It is also important to know that individuals going through treatment for infertility can often perceive psychological stress. The level of stress in infertility patients tends to increase as treatment intensifies and the duration of treatment extends. The male infertility may be a symptom or consequence of alexithymia, which is characterized by difficulties in describing emotion in words, identifying and communicating emotions. There is a possible positive correlation between the alexithymia levels in patients and psychogenic erectile problem.

There are alterations in the internal homeostasis with biochemical, hormonal, neurotransmitter, and cellular or molecular changes. Societal circumstances, life style, substance abuse, smoking, alcohol, obesity, etc., could act as a modulating factor on the effects of psychological stress. Whether stress causes infertility or infertility causes stress is still debated. It is believed that any stress including psychological stress can lead to infertility, while the infertility leads to stress culminating in a perpetuating cycle. Furthermore, psychological stress acts as an additional risk factor for infertility. For a clear understanding of this complexity, carefully designed and conducted longitudinal studies need to be undertaken.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Surgery and Urology, Consultant Urologist and Male Infertility Specialist, Fortis C-DOC Healthcare Ltd, B-16, Chirag Enclave, New Delhi, 110048, India

    S. C. Basu MBBS, FRCS (Edinburgh), FRCS (England), FICS, FACS

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  1. S. C. Basu MBBS, FRCS (Edinburgh), FRCS (England), FICS, FACS
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Correspondence to S. C. Basu MBBS, FRCS (Edinburgh), FRCS (England), FICS, FACS .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Medical Physiology, Stellenbosch University Faculty of Health Sciences, Tygerberg, South Africa

    Stefan S. du Plessis

  2. Department of Urology, Cleveland Clinic Center for Reproductive Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio, USA

    Ashok Agarwal

  3. Department of Urology, Cleveland Clinic Glickman Urological & Kidney Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, USA

    Edmund S. Sabanegh, Jr.

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Basu, S.C. (2014). Psychological Stress and Male Infertility. In: du Plessis, S., Agarwal, A., Sabanegh, Jr., E. (eds) Male Infertility. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-1040-3_10

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