Oral hygene linked to male subfertility?

If the man in your life has male factor issues that are interfering with production of healthy sperm, you might want to check his dental health. This new article from iVillage indicates that dental health may play a part in keeping out infections that can affect sperm health.

Subfertile men have reduced reproductive capacity. Subfertility can be caused by many factors including a bacterial infection in the male reproductive system. Directed antibiotic therapy alone may not offer a permanent cure. This is because oral bacteria may reinfect the reproductive system when they are intermittently released into the blood stream during gingival bleeding. Indeed, the bacteria present in the semen (called bacteriospermia) or ejaculate of infected patients are often identical to common intraoral bacteria. Escherichia coli can reach the male reproductive organs via the circulatory system and reduce sperm motility (Linossier et al. 1982). Bieniek et al., (1993) found that the presence of bacteria in sperm was eliminated when dental cleanings and directed antibiotic therapy were both prescribed. Improvement in sperm motility, morphology and density has also been noted after subfertile males participated in regular dental cleanings (Ensslen et al. 1990).

Bieniek et al., (1989) suspects a direct causal relationship between dental diseases and asymptomatic bacteriosperms, which probably leads to subfertility.

Dr. C. Matthew Peterson, fertility specialist, adds "One investigative group has raised the possibility that intraoral bacteria may be a source of recurrent bacterial contamination of the sperm. Further work will determine the actual relationship of intraoral bacteria and bacteriospermia."