The Effect of Daily Intake of Selenium, Vitamin E and Folic Acid on Sperm Parameters in Males with Idiopathic Infertility: A Single-Blind Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

Abstract

Background: Male infertility may originate from a wide spectrum of conditions while in 30-40 percent of cases, no significantreason can be identified. Thereby, it is recognized as male idiopathic infertility. This study was undertaken to investigatethe effect of daily intake of selenium, vitamin E and folic acid on sperm parameters in males with idiopathic infertility.Materials and Methods: Seventy infertile men were selected to participate in this single-blind, randomized controlledclinical trial using convenience sampling. They were equally divided into two groups via permuted blockrandomization method. The intervention group received selenium tablet (200 μg per day, oral), vitamin E capsule(400 IU per day, oral) and folic acid tablet (5 mg per day, oral).The placebo group received matching placebo forthree months. Semen volume, total sperm motility, sperm concentration, progressive sperm motility, normal spermmorphology, sperm motility index (SMI) and functional sperm concentration (FSC) were assessed by sperm qualityanalyzer-v (SQAV) before and after the intervention. Paired t test, and independent t test were used to compare theresults within and between the groups, respectively. The IBM SPSS V.16.005 was used for data analysis. A p <0.05was considered statistically significant.Results: After three months, according to within-group analysis, a significant difference was found in mean SMI(P=0.007) and FSC (P=0.001) in the intervention group. According to between-group analysis, no significant differencewas found in mean semen volume (P=0.610), sperm concentration (P=0.126), total sperm motility (P=0.765), progressivesperm motility (P=0.767), normal sperm morph (P=0.403), SMI (P=0.556) or FSC (P=0.706) between the groups.Conclusion: Consumption of selenium, vitamin E and folic acid in infertile men with asthenozoospermia was not effective(Registration number: IRCT2017012432153N1).

Keywords

• folic acid
• parameters
• selenium
• spermatozoa
• vitamin e