Is varicocele hereditary?

Many people have encountered varicocele in their lives. Although varicocele does not seem to be that serious, it can actually lead to a decrease in the quality of male semen. When the quality of semen changes, it means that infertility problems may occur, which will also affect men's future sexual behavior and fertility.

Varicose veins can lead to reduced semen quality in healthy men

The researchers looked at data on varicocele, testicular function tests, and analysis of semen and body androgen levels in more than 7,000 young European men. They noted that more than one in six men (15.7%) were diagnosed with varicocele.

Men with varicocele secrete less semen, and more than half of the men with varicocele have lower sperm quality, while only 17% of the men with varicocele have higher sperm quality. As the degree of varicocele increases, the sperm concentration in the semen of men also decreases. The sperm concentration of men with grade 3 varicocele is less than half of that of men without varicocele (23 million/mL: 50 million/mL), and the same is true for the number of sperm. The proportion of normal-shaped sperm in the semen of men with grade 3 varicocele was 5.1%, while the proportion of normal-shaped sperm in the semen of men without varicocele was 7.2%.

Compared with men without varicocele, men with varicocele had significantly increased blood FSH and LH levels, but decreased inhibin B levels. There was no significant difference in blood testosterone and free testosterone levels between the two groups. This large cross-sectional clinical study showed that semen quality was significantly reduced in men with varicocele.

The results showed that varicocele can lead to reduced semen quality and alter male androgen levels in healthy men.