A Systematic Review on the Investigation of SARS-CoV-2 in Semen

Figures & data

Table 1 Study Characteristics for SARS-CoV-2 Positive Individuals

Publication (Subjects Enrolled Month, Year)	City, Country of the Study	Stage of Disease	Sample Size (n)	Presence of the Virus in Semen?	Age of the Subjects: Mean (Min-Max)	Mean Days Until Semen Sample Collection (Min-Max)
Li et al May2020^Citation13	Shangqiu, China	Recovered & Acute	38	06/38	—	10.5 (6–16)
		Recovered	23	02/23	—	2.5 (2–3)
		Acute	15	4/15	—	5.5 (2–8)
Kayaaslan et al April 2020^11	Ankara, Turkey	Acute stage, hospitalized	16	0/16	33.5 (18–54)	1 (0–7)
		Mild	11	0/11	—	—
		Moderate	5	0/5	—	—
Holtmann et al May 2020^12	Dusseldorf, Germany	Recovered & Acute	18	0/18	—	32.7 [8–54]
		Recovered	14	0/14	42.7± 10.4^a	34.9 ± 11.7^a
		Acute	4	0/4	40.8± 8.7	25.5 ± 8.3^a
Song et al April 20205^Citation15	Wuhan, China	Recovered & Deceased	13	0/13	—	30 (14–42)
		Recovered	12	0/12	33 (22–38)	29.8 (14–42)
		Deceased	1	0/1	67	41
Guo et al June 2020^16	Shandong, China	Recovered & Viremia cleared	23	0/23	41 (20–62)	32 (27.5–33)
		Recovered	12	0/12	—	31 (26–34)
		Viremia cleared	11	0/11	—	31 (26–34)
Pan et al March 2020^17	Wuhan, China	Recovered	34	0/34	37 (18–57)	31 [29–36]^b
Rawlings et al August 2020^18	California, USA	Recovered	6	0/6	38 (28–45)	12 (6–17)
Ma et al March 2020^19	Wuhan, China	Recovered	12	0/12	31 (25–46)	78.5 (56–109)

Notes: ^aReported as standard deviation. ^bReported as Interquartile range (IQR). —Data not provided. Bolded Number, Cumulative amount of semen samples in the present study.

Figure 1 Flow diagram of literature search.

Note: Adapted from Moher D, Liberati A, Tetzlaff J, Altman DG, Group P. Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: the PRISMA statement.  BMJ. Jul 21 2009;339:b2535. Creative Commons license and disclaimer available from: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ legalcode.¹⁴

Figure 2 A scatter plot of study sample size over time (mean days) from diagnosis until semen sample collection. The size of each data point indicates the corresponding sample size.

Li D, Jin M, Bao P, Zhao W, Zhang S. Clinical characteristics and results of semen tests among men with Coronavirus disease 2019. JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3(5):e208292. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.829232379329

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Song C, Wang Y, Li W, et al. Absence of 2019 novel coronavirus in semen and testes of COVID-19 patientsdagger. Biol Reprod. 2020;103(1):4–6. doi:10.1093/biolre/ioaa05032297920

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Moher D, Shamseer L, Clarke M, et al. Preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis protocols (PRISMA-P) 2015 statement. Syst Rev. 2015;4:1. doi:10.1186/2046-4053-4-125554246

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