title: Air-conditioned environments do not prevent deterioration of human semen quality during the summer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine if air conditioning might mitigate summer reductions in semen quality.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective study of semen quality in summer and winter.
  
  
  METHODS
  Normal human volunteers were studied in the setting of a fertility laboratory.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two groups of volunteers were selected from the vicinity of New Orleans: 64 men who worked indoors during the summer in air-conditioned environments and 76 others who worked outdoors.
  
  
  METHODS
  None.
  
  
  METHODS
  Parameters of manual semen analysis were examined for seasonal and group differences.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Remarkably similar reductions in semen quality during summer as compared with winter were observed in both indoor and outdoor workers, respectively, with regard to the following parameters of semen quality: 19% and 19% in sperm concentration, 25% and 27% in total sperm per ejaculate, 17% and 20% in motile sperm concentration, 13% and 15% in percent sperm with normal morphology, and 23% and 23% in concentration of morphologically normal motile sperm.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings do not support the hypothesis that the heat of the summer is detrimental to male reproductive capacity. The available evidence suggests instead a possible role of photoperiod in causing the seasonal changes in semen quality.
authors.affiliation: Chemical Industry Institute of Toxicology, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Levine
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bell
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Shue
authors.forename: G N
authors.initials: GN
authors.lastname: Greenberg
authors.forename: B L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Bordson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000389:Air Conditioning; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D004651:Employment; D004777:Environment; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012621:Seasons; D012661:Semen / Q000502:physiology*; D013076:Sperm Count; D013081:Sperm Motility; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013696:Temperature