title: Bacterial agents as a cause of infertility in humans.
abstract: Infertility is a problem affecting almost 15% of couples. There are many causes for this condition, among which urogenital bacterial infections seem to play an important role. Many studies have explained the mechanisms by which bacteria cause infertility both in men and women. Therefore we undertook this study to evaluate the presence of genito-urinary infections in infertile couples who sought counselling to investigate their condition. Microbiological analysis was performed on semen and vaginal/cervical samples of both partners of each couple. The percentage of individuals affected by a urogenital bacterial infection was between 14 and 20%. More significantly, most of the species isolated both in men and women have been described in the literature as potential causes of infertility.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento Scienze Biomediche, Microbiologia Sperimentale e Clinica-Università degli Studi di Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Melania
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ruggeri
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento Scienze Biomediche, Microbiologia Sperimentale e Clinica-Università degli Studi di Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cannas
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento Scienze Biomediche, Microbiologia Sperimentale e Clinica-Università degli Studi di Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cubeddu
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento Scienze Biomediche, Microbiologia Sperimentale e Clinica-Università degli Studi di Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Molicotti
authors.affiliation: Clinica Ostetrica e Ginecologica, Dipartimento di Scienze Chirurgiche, Microchirurgiche e Mediche, Università di Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Gennarina Laura
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Piras
authors.affiliation: Clinica Ostetrica e Ginecologica, Dipartimento di Scienze Chirurgiche, Microchirurgiche e Mediche, Università di Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dessole
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento Scienze Biomediche, Microbiologia Sperimentale e Clinica-Università degli Studi di Sassari, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefania
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zanetti
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007246:Infertility / Q000382:microbiology*; D008297:Male
keywords: Bacteria; Infertility; Urogenital infection