Chinese researches have said they have been able to find traces of the coronavirus in the semen of some severely infected men.
The new study found evidence of the virus in six men out of a group of 38 patients with COVID-19 at Shangqiu Municipal Hospital in China.
Semen was found in samples provided by six men included four who were still infected and two who were recovering.
The latest development has raised the possibility that the virus might be sexually transmitted and not just through droplets.
The findings from the study led by Dr. Weiguo Zhao of the People’s Liberation Army General Hospital in Beijing, were published May 7 in the journal JAMA Network Open.
According to the publication, “among 50 patients identified, 12 patients were unable to provide a semen specimen because of erectile dysfunction, being in a comatose state, or dying prior to recruitment; therefore, a total of 38 patients were enrolled for semen testing.
Of these 38 participants who provided a semen specimen, 23 participants (60.5%) had achieved clinical recovery and 15 participants (39.5%) were at the acute stage of infection. Results of semen testing found that 6 patients (15.8%) had results positive for SARS-CoV-2, including 4 of 15 patients (26.7%) who were at the acute stage of infection and 2 of 23 patients (8.7%) who were recovering, which is particularly noteworthy.
But there was no significant difference between negative and positive test results for patients by age, urogenital disease history, days since onset, days since hospitalization, or days since clinical recovery.”
Some infectious disease experts say the new evidence isn’t surprising since the virus is also found in stool and other body fluids.
Dr. Ryan Berglund, a urologist with the Cleveland Clinic’s Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute was quoted by the cbsnews as saying that this does not constitute concrete evidence that COVID-19 can be sexually transmitted.
“I think that’s premature,” Berglund said adding “You have to look at this as a sign that semen, as along with a number of other body fluids, can contain the virus.”
The Chinese researchers also noted that 27 different viruses have been detected in human semen.
The study said t”he presence of viruses in semen may be more common than currently understood, and traditional non–sexually transmitted viruses should not be assumed to be totally absent in genital secretions.”
Source: Africafeeds.com
