title: Effect of metformin therapy and dietary supplements on semen parameters in hyperinsulinaemic males.
abstract: Previous reports indicated that hyperinsulinaemic men may exhibit a higher percentage of poorly compacted DNA in their spermatozoa and less success in an IVF programme (Andrologia, 45, 2003, 18; Andrologia, 2014, doi: 10.1111/and.12227). The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of metformin (Glucophage®) and antioxidant treatment (StaminoGro®) on the semen parameters of hyperinsulinaemic men. Nineteen hyperinsulinaemic male patients were treated for 3 months with metformin alone (Group A), and fifteen patients used metformin in combination with the nutritional supplement (Group B). Combined data of the two groups (pre- and post-treatment) differ significantly regarding sperm morphology (P = 0.0003) and CMA3 (P < 0.0001) values. The improvement in sperm morphology after treatment was similar for the two respective groups (P < 0.05). The morphological normal sperm forms increased from the mean percentage of 3.9 to 5.5% and from 4.2 to 5.5% for Group A and B respectively. Where a combination of metformin and the supplement were used (Group B), the combination treatment proved to be superior in obtaining enhanced chromatin packaging quality although not statistically significant (P = 0.5929) when compared with the metformin (Group A) group. The chromatin packaging quality in Group B improved with 10% while the improvement in Group A was approximately 8.3%. Therefore, infertile hyperinsulinaemic men can benefit from metformin treatment and should be advised on the use of nutritional supplements with antioxidant properties.
authors.affiliation: Medfem Clinic, Bryanston, South Africa.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bosman
authors.affiliation: Medfem Clinic, Bryanston, South Africa.
authors.forename: A D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Esterhuizen
authors.affiliation: Medfem Clinic, Bryanston, South Africa.
authors.forename: F A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.affiliation: Biostatistics Unit, Medical Research Council and Division of Clinical Epidemiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Becker
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria, South Africa.
authors.forename: W A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Hoffmann
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000596:Amino Acids / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D006801:Humans; D006946:Hyperinsulinism / Q000188:drug therapy*; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008687:Metformin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008875:Middle Aged; D055101:Semen Analysis; D013076:Sperm Count; D013081:Sperm Motility; D013094:Spermatozoa; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014815:Vitamins / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D000975:Antioxidants; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents; D014131:Trace Elements; D014815:Vitamins; D008687:Metformin
keywords: CMA
  3; male hyperinsulinaemia; metformin; morphology; nutritional supplement