Table 4. Summary of the findings of the present study.
| Outcome | (No. of studies) No. of participants |
Results | Heterogeneity | Sensitivity analysis | Risk of bias | Conclusion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SV | (5) 732 total participants 439 treated 293 controls |
SMD 0.313; 95% CI -0.242 to 0.868; p>0.05 | Significant heterogeneity, I2=89.7% | No study was sensitive enough to alter the results. | No significant publication bias, Egger’s test (p=0.23) and symmetrical funnel plots. | Non-significant increase in SV. |
| SC | (13) 2,267 total participants 1,347 treated 920 controls |
SMD 1.864; 95% CI 1.249 to 2.479; p<0.001 | Significant heterogeneity, I2=97.6% | No study was sensitive enough to alter the results. | Significant publication bias, Egger’s test (p<0.001) and asymmetrical funnel plots. | Significant increase in SC, favoring treatment. |
| TSC | (5) 1,073 total participants 622 treated 451 controls |
SMD 1.894; 95% CI 0.566 to 3.222; p<0.05 | Significant heterogeneity, I2=97.8% | No study was sensitive enough to alter the results. | No significant publication bias, Egger’s test (p>0.05) and symmetrical funnel plots. | Significant increase in TSC, favoring treatment. |
| SPM | (9) 1,438 total participants 854 treated 584 controls |
SMD 3.301; 95% CI 2.164 to 4.437; p<0.01 | Significant heterogeneity, I2=98.5% | No study was sensitive enough to alter the results. | Significant publication bias, Egger’s test (p<0.001) and asymmetrical funnel plots. | Significant increase in SPM, favoring treatment. |
| TM | (7) 1,126 total participants 659 treated 467 controls |
SMD 0.887; 95% CI 0.036 to 1.738; p=0.041 | Significant heterogeneity, I2=97.3% | No study was sensitive enough to alter the results. | No significant publication bias, Egger’s test (p>0.05) and symmetrical funnel plots. | Significant increase in TM, favoring treatment. |
| SM | (11) 1,403 total participants 818 treated 585 controls |
SMD 1.673; 95% CI 0.876 to 2.470; p<0.05 | Significant heterogeneity, I2=98.5% | No study was sensitive enough to alter the results. | No significant publication bias, Egger’s test (p>0.05) and symmetrical funnel plots. | Significant increase in SM, favoring treatment. |
CI: confidence interval, SC: sperm concentration, SM: sperm morphology, SMD: standardized mean difference, SPM: sperm progressive motility, SV: semen volume, TM: total motility, TSC: total sperm count.