- Title
- Sperm DNA fragmentation abnormalities in men from couples with a history of recurrent miscarriage
- Creator
- Leach, Mikaela; Aitken, Robert J.; Sacks, Gavin
- Relation
- Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Vol. 55, Issue 4, p. 379-383
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ajo.12373
- Publisher
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2015
- Description
- Background: Previous studies have described an association between sperm with DNA damage and a history of recurrent miscarriage (RM), although it is not clear whether there is benefit in screening for sperm DNA fragmentation and to what extent DNA fragmentation impacts upon RM. Aims: To identify what proportion of couples experiencing RM are affected by DNA fragmentation abnormalities. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective study, between 2008 and 2013, couples with a history of recurrent miscarriage (≥3 first trimester miscarriages) were investigated comprehensively for known causes (karyotype, uterine, antiphospholipid syndrome, thrombophilia) and also by semen analysis, including DNA fragmentation [sperm chromatin structure analysis (SCSA)]. Statistical analysis was performed on SPSS software with significance taken as P < 0.05. Results: There were 108 couples with a median sperm DNA fragmentation index (DFI) of 9.50%. Normal levels were found in 70.5% of men (DFI < 15%), 23% had high levels (DFI 15-30%), and 6.5% had very high levels (DFI > 30%). Couples with otherwise unexplained recurrent miscarriage had significantly higher DFI than those with other causes identified on routine screening (P = 0.012). Conclusions: In couples experiencing RM, 30% (32/108) of men had sperm with high levels of DNA fragmentation (DFI > 15%). This may be a contributing factor to the clinical syndrome of RM, and future clinical trials of therapies for these couples are warranted.
- Subject
- DNA Fragmentation; sperm; recurrent miscarriage; recurrent spontaneous abortion; DNA damage
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1331358
- Identifier
- uon:26608
- Identifier
- ISSN:0004-8666
- Language
- eng
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