A full year into the COVID-19 pandemic, medical professionals and scientists know a lot more than they did about the virus, its effects, and how to treat it than they did in the early days. And, with vaccines being administered across the country in waves, there is renewed hope that life will begin to return to normal in 2021. Still, there are many unknowns. One of the things about which there is still very little data is the impact of the virus itself, or about the newly approved vaccines, on fertility. This can be an added source of stress and concern for both men and women who are undergoing fertility treatments or who want to conceive in the future.
The Society for Male Reproduction and Urology (SMRU) and the Society for the Study of Male Reproduction (SSMR) released a joint statement recently recommending that men who want to father children in the future should receive the COVID-19 vaccine if they want it and otherwise meet the criteria for vaccination. This recommendation is consistent with the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology’s (ACOG) recommendation that pregnant and lactating women be able to receive the vaccine, and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine’s recommendation that the vaccine not be withheld from women receiving fertility treatments or from pregnant women.
The joint statement noted that approximately 16 percent of the men in the clinical trials for the Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine reported experiencing fevers after receiving their second doses. Fevers in general are known to result in temporary declines in sperm production, but this is true whether the fever is from COVID-19 or any other illness.
The bottom line is that medical specialists believe, based on all available data, that the COVID-19 vaccine is safe for both men and women who want to become parents. As always, seek the advice from your doctor to decide what the best option is for you and your situation.
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