CoQ10 Aids Male Fertility

 Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) supplementation improves sperm quality and improve pregnancy rate, according to Iranian researchers. Results from their placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial were published in the June issue of International Urology and Nephrology (2012 Jun;44(3):689-700).

Led by urology professor Mohammad Reza Safarinejad, the research team studied the effect of CoQ10 (as Kaneka Q10, from Kaneka Corp.) on sperm density, sperm motility, and sperm morphology. In the trial, 287 infertile men with idiopathic oligoastenospermia took either 300 mg/day Kaneka Q10 for 12 months. Researchers performed two semen analyses and determined resting levels of sex hormones in all participants, who were followed for an additional 12 months after discontinuing supplementation.

Results showed CoQ10 supplementation improved mean sperm concentration, sperm progressive motility, and sperm with normal morphology by 113.7 percent, 104.8 percent, and 78.9 percent, respectively (all Ps < 0.05). The overall pregnancy rate was 34.1 percent within a mean of 8.4 ± 4.7 months. By comparison, on the waiting list for male sub-fertility patients, the crude 12-month cumulative spontaneous pregnancy rate was 6.4 percent.