Healthy Discoveries: Study links taking painkillers during pregnancy to cryptorchidism

Healthy discoveries

According to a study published on Monday, 08 November 2010, use of mild painkillers such as paracetamol, aspirin and ibuprofen during pregnancy may partly explain for a sharp increase in male reproductive troubles in recent decades.






The research found that women who took a combination of more than one mild analgesic While pregnant had an increased risk of giving birth to sons with undescended testicles.


This condition, called cryptorchidism, is known to be a danger factor for poor semen quality and a greater risk of testicular cancer. The study found the risk of cryptorchidism was particularly increased during the second trimester, the fourth to sixth months of pregnancy.


The researchers from Finland, France and Denmark, whose work was published in the Human Reproduction journal, said more studies were urgently needed and they need also to advise pregnant women to reconsider on use of painkillers.


"Women may want to try to reduce their analgesic use while pregnant," said Henrik Leffers of Copenhagen's Rigshospitalet, who led the research. "However, as biologists this isn't something we can counsel women about. So we recommend that pregnant women seek advice from their doctor."


More than half of pregnant women in Western countries report taking mild analgesics, according to the Leffers team.


In general, physicians in most countries say women should avoid taking medicines during pregnancy, but that paracetamol, aspirin and ibuprofen are considered safe in some conditions and at certain times.


Research in developed nations has shown that sperm counts have fallen by around 50% in the past half century.


This study conducted on two groups of women, 1,463 in Finland and 834 in Denmark, who were questioned about their use of medication during pregnancy.


Their male babies were inspected at birth for any signs of cryptorchidism, ranging from a mild form of the condition in which the testis is located high in the scrotum to the more severe form, in which the testis is high up in the paunch.


The study was supported by work by scientists in France and Denmark who studied mice and found that analgesics led to scanty supplies of the male hormone testosterone during a crucial period of gestation when the male organs are forming.


These researchers said that the impact of analgesics on mice was comparable with that caused by parallel doses of known hormone, or endocrine, disrupters like phthalates -- a family of chemical compounds used in the manufacture of plastics like PVC.


The findings of the human study presented that women who used more than one painkiller concurrently had a seven-fold increased danger of giving birth to sons with some form of cryptorchidism compared with women who took nothing.

The second trimester appeared to be a especially sensitive time, with simultaneous use of more than one painkiller during this period linked to a 16-fold increase in danger.

"Though we should be careful ... the use of mild analgesics constitutes by far the largest exposure to endocrine disruptors among pregnant women, and use of these compounds is at present the best suggestion for an exposure that can affect a large ratio of the human population," Leffers said.


Commenting on the results, Allan Pacey of Britain's Sheffield University said they were "somewhat alarming".

"It is worth noting the researchers found a important distinction when women had used painkillers for two weeks or more and that the effect was greatest when taking them during their second trimester. Clearly further research is needed as a matter of priority," he said in an emailed comment.




If you like this article, please feed our RSS and share it now :)