Population-based Semen Analysis Results and Fertility Among Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Results From Subfertility Health Assisted Reproduction and the Environment (SHARE) Study

Objective To evaluate male fertility in Crohn disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) by examining semen analysis results and paternity from the SHARE study (Subfertility Health Assisted Reproduction and the Environment), a population-based cohort of semen analysis results from Utah men. Methods A population-based cohort of men with CD or UC was identified using the Utah Population Database (contains person-level linked demographic, genealogical, and medical record information for 85% of Utahans) from 1996 to 2014, and validated by clinical chart review. This cohort was then cross-linked (n = 55) to the SHARE population dataset of semen analysis results. Men with CD or UC were compared with population-based, age-matched, paired (1:1) controls (n = 47). Paternity was evaluated though presence and number of linked offspring and inter-birth interval. Results Offspring were identified in 71% of UC patients (mean of 1.8 children) and 61% of CD patients (mean of 1.2 children). Compared with matched controls, there were no differences in number of offspring, mean inter-birth interval, or any of the evaluated semen analysis parameters among either men with CD or UC. Conclusion Fertility and semen analysis values among men with UC or CD are not significantly impacted compared with population-based, age-matched controls.