Vaccine has no impact on fertility, says Israeli study

The coronavirus vaccine has no impact on fertility, either male or female, according to new Israeli research.

A team from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer conducted a study on 36 couples who unsuccessfully underwent fertility treatments before they got inoculated with the Pfizer vaccine and went back for another round of treatments after they got jabbed.

The researchers compared all parameters and found that the shots had no influence on the patients’ performances or ovarian reserve.

“We decided to carry out this research because many people are scared of the possible effects of the vaccines on fertility,” said Prof. Raoul Orvieto, director of Sheba’s IVF Fertility Clinic and lead author of the paper, which was recently published in the journal Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology.

“Comparing two IVF [in vitro fertilization] cycles was the best way to see if the vaccine would have any impact in terms of number of eggs or any other factors,” he said. “It did not.”

The team looked at both partners, which included conducting semen analyses.

“We are the first to demonstrate and publish that the vaccine has no effect on both male and female fertility,” Orvieto said.

As a result of the second IVF cycle, some 30% of the couples conceived, a number higher than average, he said, adding: “People who come to us are often at an older age or with significant challenges. Usually, the success rate is around 25%.”

Orvieto said he hopes more people will be convinced that the vaccine is safe and get inoculated. Some preliminary studies seem to indicate that a coronavirus infection might damage fertility by decreasing ovarian function or semen quality, he said.

A study from the University of Miami that was recently published in the JAMA journal also examined the vaccine’s impact on male fertility and found it had no impact.

“We measured semen volume, sperm concentration and the total amount of moving sperm and found there were no declines in any of the parameters as compared to the baseline analysis,” Daniel C. Gonzalez, BSc, the study’s first author, was quoted as saying by the News Medical website.

According to Orvieto, it is going to be important to continue to study the issue to increase the number of patients taken into consideration and to look at a longer follow-up period.

“However, I do not expect any different results,” he said. “I hope this will help fight misconceptions about the vaccine.”