‘Male infertility highest in Bengal’

• Male infertility was on the rise across India, and Kolkata was no exception: Experts
• ‘A steep 10. 8% of our male patients in Bengal had zero sperm count in 2021’
• Poor lifestyle, late marriage, work schedules and food habits responsible for jump in cases

In stunning survey conducted by a reproductive facility on couples seeking fertility treatment between 2018 and 2021, it came to fore that Bengal has the highest number of men with abnormal sperm parameters in the country, a prime condition for infertility. It is as high as nearly 86%.  The study was conducted on 64,452 couples.

Male infertility was one of the reasons associated with infertility in 61% of 2,179 couples who sought treatment at the in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) centre in Bengal between January and October this year, said the study.

The survey flags precise and quick diagnoses, apart from poor lifestyle, stress, late marriage, busy work schedules and improper food habits as being responsible for the jump in the number of infertile males, according to a Times of India report on the survey.

Nitiz Murdia, co-founder and managing director of Indira IVF, which conducted the nationwide survey, said that a very high percentage of men in Bengal suffer from one of the three parameters that determine sperm abnormality. “The figure varied between 79% in 2018 and 96% in 2021. A steep 10. 8% of our male patients in Bengal had zero sperm count in 2021,” Murdia added. Experts in Kolkata said male infertility was on the rise across India, and Kolkata was no exception.

While women, traditionally, are the first to undergo an infertility test, an equal number of men eventually turn out to be infertile, reported Asianetnews.

In India, abnormal sperm parameters in men rose from 63.7% in 2018 to 80.9% in 2021. The number of infertile men has jumped over the last decade due to two reasons. First, more men are now getting tested; secondly, more precise diagnosis has made it possible to identify infertility, according to the study.

Experts say that male infertility has been on the rise. “As male and female causes often co-exist, it is important that both partners are investigated for infertility. In a male-dominated society like ours, a significant number of men do not come forward to investigate and most often, the woman is blamed for being unable to conceive,” Souren Bhattacharjee, head of Birla Fertility and IVF Centre, said, according to Times of India.

-INDIA NEWS STREAM