title: One abstinence day decreases sperm DNA fragmentation in 90 % of selected patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this prospective descriptive study was to evaluate the efficacy of reducing sexual abstinence as a strategy to decrease sperm DNA fragmentation.
  
  
  METHODS
  Men with one or more of the following characteristics were included in the study: older than 44, smoking more than 10 cigarettes per day, with a body mass index over 25, diabetes mellitus, varicocele, a previous chemotherapy treatment, severe oligozoospermia, prostatitis, cryptorchidism, having a partner with recurrent miscarriage and/or implantation failure, poor embryo morphology and/or fertilization failure. Patients were asked to produce a semen sample after 3 to 7 abstinence days which was subjected to a sperm DNA fragmentation test. When DNA fragmentation was above or equal to 30 %, it was considered to be altered. Patients with increased DNA fragmentation were asked to produce another semen sample following a "one abstinence day protocol". This protocol required producing up to three semen samples with 1 day of abstinence and measuring sperm DNA fragmentation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Four hundred and sixteen patients produced a first semen sample after a sexual abstinence of 3 to 7 days. Sperm DNA fragmentation was altered in 46 samples (11.1 %). Thirty five patients with increased DNA fragmentation samples completed the "one abstinence day protocol". DNA fragmentation decreased to normal values in one of the three attempts in 91.4 % of the patients: 81.3 % in the first attempt, 12.5 % in the second try and 6.3 % in the third.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This approach could be a simple, low-cost and effective way to decrease sperm DNA damage to normal values.
authors.affiliation: URH García del Real, C/Ana Teresa 30, 28023, Madrid, Spain, ipons@urh.es.
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pons
authors.forename: Rosa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cercas
authors.forename: Celia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Villas
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Braña
authors.forename: Sylvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fernández-Shaw
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D053938:DNA Fragmentation; D005307:Fertilization in Vitro / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012098:Reproduction / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D012746:Sexual Abstinence; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000473:pathology*