Body Mass Index Effects Kruger’s Criteria in Infertile Men

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to evaluate the relationship between sperm parameters and body mass index (BMI) in the male spouses with infertility complaints, who had reffered to our clinic. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The male spouses from 159 couples reffering to our clinic because of infertility, during a six-month period, were included in the study. In this prospective case control study, the included men were catego- rized as non-obese (BMI<25 kg/m(2)), overweight (BMI 25-29 kg/m(2)) and obese (BMI ≥30 kg/m(2)) according to their BMIs. The assessed sperm parameters consisted of; sperm concentration, Kruger morphology, progressive motility level, and volume pH levels. The statistical significant level was set as less than 0.05 . RESULTS: The assessed group consisted of 159 patients applying to our clinic with infertility symptoms. Fifty-three non-obese, 53 overweight and 53 obese men were eligible for the study. There was statistically significant differences in sperm volume (P<0.001), progressive motility (P<0.001), postwash sperm count (P<0.001) and Kruger (P<0.001) morphology among the patient groups grouping according to the BMI levels. CONCLUSION: In this study, increased BMI was associated with decreased semen quality, affecting volume, concentra- tion, and motility. further studies with a wider range of prospective cases need to be conducted in order to investigate the effects on male fertility in more detail.