Impact of age on male fertility.

Source

University of Tennessee Graduate School of Medicine, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA.

Abstract

PURPOSE OF REVIEW:

An increasing number of older men are seeking help for fathering a child, but male fertility gradually declines with age. This review highlights changes in male reproductive biology and practical clinical concerns for aging men.

RECENT FINDINGS:

Aging may have an impact on sperm DNA damage such as single nucleotide polymorphisms. A recent landmark study identified that the number of single gene de-novo mutations in the offspring increased by two mutations per year based on paternal age. Additionally, advanced paternal age has been linked with neurocognitive disorders such as autism and schizophrenia. For the management of hypogonadism, strategies using selective estrogen modulators have been increasingly utilized to maintain fertility potential.

SUMMARY:

Aging has an impact on male fertility potential, as well as potential genetic effects for the offspring.

The Male Biological Clock Aging sperm is linked to children’s developmental and psychiatric conditions

The Male Biological Clock

Aging sperm is linked to children’s developmental and psychiatric conditions

Paternal Age and Risk of Autism in an Ethnically Diverse, Non-Industrialized Setting: Aruba

Men, your biological clock ticks, too

Robert McCartney: Columnist

Men, your biological clock ticks, too

By Robert McCartney, Saturday, September 1, 2:52 PMThe Washington Post

A new medical study offering evidence that men, too, have to worry about their biological clocks if they desire parenthood has brought about a modest, but noteworthy, advance toward parity in our attitudes about the sexes.

Researchers in Iceland found that older fathers transmit more genetic mutations to their offspring than younger ones. The effect, though small, grows with each year of age. That could help explain earlier research showing that children of older fathers are more at risk for disorders such as schizophrenia and autism.
The new report lit up the Internet when it was issued Aug. 22, with much of the traffic generated by women weary of shouldering all the responsibility for children’s health. A common theme in e-mails and Web postings was: “Look, LOOK, the father is to blame, too, if we wait too long and something goes wrong!”
We men can hardly fault women for such self-righteous satisfaction. Females experience relentless, unforgiving pressure to have children early. That’s partly because they eventually become infertile but also because of the risk of birth defects increases the later they have children.
“Women are constantly put in a place where they’re told, ‘You should be a mother.’ If you’re not a mother, what’s wrong with you,” said Jodi Jacobson, president of RH Reality Check, a Washington-based online publication on reproductive and sexual health.
By contrast, men have escaped accountability. Our bodies typically manufacture sperm into old age. Until recently, there wasn’t much reason to fear that delaying fatherhood would lead to negative health effects for the child.
Instead, in contemporary culture, older fathers draw criticism mainly because they’ll be too stiff to toss a ball around in the yard. Or, sometimes, because the age difference with the mother is unseemly.
However, as scientific evidence about dangers linked to older fathers has accumulated, the medical community is starting to warn the public.
Earlier this year, doctors at Rockville-based Shady Grove Fertility Center began telling men aged 45 and older that their risk of having unhealthy offspring could be higher now than when they were younger.
It’s not enough to warrant giving up on fatherhood. But it’s something to think about.
“The field is evolving from saying, ‘Age matters for women and not for men,’ to saying age probably matters some for men, too,” said Shady Grove physician Jason Bromer.
One expert who’s been speaking out for years is Harry Fisch, a New York-based urologist who published a book in 2005 called “The Male Biological Clock.” He warns not only about the rising chance of birth disorders with advancing years, but also about men’s declining fertility.
“Men need to know if you wait too long, you might not be able to have children and you might have genetic problems. You shouldn’t be thinking, ‘Let me just gallivant until I’m 40 or 50 and have a baby then,’ ” Fisch said. “It’s a paradigm shift in the way we’re thinking. We used to only blame the woman.”
This change raises an intriguing possibility. If men join women in thinking their age might affect their hopes for parenthood, would they adjust career plans and other life choices? Could they get more involved with their partners in making such decisions?
Some experts think the answer is yes.
The new research “levels the playing field a little bit in discussing family formation, and encourages both partners to have a role in this conversation,” said Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health in New York.
The shift could also reinforce a trend in which some young fathers are more engaged with their children than fathers in earlier generations.
“We’re seeing a cultural shift toward the caregiver being not just the mom anymore, and this [research] would probably encourage the father as well as the mother to want to have children sooner rather than later,” said Shireen Mitchell, vice chair of the District-based National Council of Women’s Organizations.
It’s a nice thought. I’ll believe the culture has changed for real when Hollywood makes a movie about a 35-year-old man desperate to get married because he’s worried his sperm quality is deteriorating.

For previous Robert McCartney columns, go to washingtonpost.com/mccartney.

Rate of de novo mutations and the importance of father's age to disease risk. Kong A, Frigge ML, Masson G, Besenbacher S, Sulem P, Magnusson G, Gudjonsson SA, Sigurdsson A, Jonasdottir A, Jonasdottir A, Wong WS, Sigurdsson G, Walters GB, Steinberg S, Helgason H, Thorleifsson G, Gudbjartsson DF, Helgason A, Magnusson OT, Thorsteinsdottir U, Stefansson K. Nature. 2012 Aug 22;488(7412):471-5. doi: 10.1038/nature11396. PMID: 22914163 [PubMed - in process]

Rate of de novo mutations and the importance of father's age to disease risk. Kong A, Frigge ML, Masson G, Besenbacher S, Sulem P, Magnusson G, Gudjonsson SA, Sigurdsson A, Jonasdottir A, Jonasdottir A, Wong WS, Sigurdsson G, Walters GB, Steinberg S, Helgason H, Thorleifsson G, Gudbjartsson DF, Helgason A, Magnusson OT, Thorsteinsdottir U, Stefansson K. Nature. 2012 Aug 22;488(7412):471-5. doi: 10.1038/nature11396. PMID: 22914163 [PubMed - in process]

Mol Psychiatry. 2012 Jun 26. doi: 10.1038/mp.2012.88. [Epub ahead of print] Advanced paternal age is associated with altered DNA methylation at brain-expressed imprinted loci in inbred mice: implications for neuropsychiatric disease. Smith RG, Reichenberg A, Kember RL, Buxbaum JD, Schalkwyk LC, Fernandes C, Mill J. Source Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, London, UK. PMID: 22733127 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22733127

Mol Psychiatry. 2012 Jun 26. doi: 10.1038/mp.2012.88. [Epub ahead of print]

Advanced paternal age is associated with altered DNA methylation at brain-expressed imprinted loci in inbred mice: implications for neuropsychiatric disease.

Smith RG, Reichenberg A, Kember RL, Buxbaum JD, Schalkwyk LC, Fernandes C, Mill J.

Source

Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, London, UK.

PMID:: 22733127; [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

The Effect of Paternal Age on Fetal Birth Outcomes.

Am J Mens Health. 2012 May 7. [Epub ahead of print]

The Effect of Paternal Age on Fetal Birth Outcomes.

Alio AP, Salihu HM, McIntosh C, August EM, Weldeselasse H, Sanchez E, Mbah AK.

Abstract

Research investigating the role of paternal age in adverse birth outcomes is limited. This population-based retrospective cohort study used the Missouri maternally linked data set from 1989 to 2005 to assess whether paternal age affects fetal birth outcomes: low birth weight (LBW), preterm birth (PTB), stillbirth, and small size for gestational age (SGA). We examined these outcomes among infants across seven paternal age-groups (<20, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-45, and >45 years) using the generalized estimating equation framework. Compared with infants born to younger fathers (25-29 years), infants born to fathers aged 40 to 45 years had a 24% increased risk of stillbirth but a reduced risk of SGA. A 48% increased risk of late stillbirth was observed in infants born to advanced paternal age (>45 years). Moreover, advanced paternal age (>45 years) was observed to result in a 19%, 13%, and 29% greater risk for LBW, PTB, and VPTB (very preterm birth) infants, respectively. Infants born to fathers aged 30 to 39 years had a lower risk of LBW, PTB, and SGA, whereas those born to fathers aged 24 years or younger had an elevated likelihood of experiencing these same adverse outcomes. These findings demonstrate that paternal age influences birth outcomes and warrants further investigation.