Table 1.
General characteristics of asthenozoospermia cases and normal controls.
| Characteristics | Cases | Controls | P value* |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. of participants | 549 | 581 | |
| Age (years), median (IQR) | 33.00 (30.00–36.00) | 32.00 (29.00–34.00) | <0.05 |
| BMI (kg/m2), median (IQR) | 26.17 (23.72–28.73) | 25.95 (23.36–28.73) | 0.36 |
| Physical activity (MET/hours/week), median (IQR) | 132.83 (100.70–217.17) | 127.57 (98.35–226.67) | 0.67 |
| Ever smoking (n, %) | 264 (48.09) | 307 (52.84) | 0.11 |
| Ever alcohol drinking (n, %) | 199 (36.25) | 250 (43.03) | <0.05 |
| Ever dietary change (n, %) | 127 (23.13) | 115 (19.79) | 0.17 |
| Educational level (n, %) | 0.67 | ||
| Junior secondary or below | 121 (22.04) | 141 (24.27) | |
| Senior high school/technical secondary school | 79 (14.39) | 82 (14.11) | |
| Junior college/university or above | 349 (63.57) | 358 (61.62) | |
| Annual family income (thousand yuan), (n, %) | 0.76 | ||
| <50 | 98 (17.85) | 94 (16.18) | |
| 50 to <100 | 209 (38.07) | 226 (38.90) | |
| ≥100 | 242 (44.08) | 261 (44.92) | |
| Abstinence time (days), median (IQR) | 4.00 (3.00–5.00) | 4.00 (3.00–5.00) | <0.05** |
| Semen parameters, median (IQR) | |||
| Ejaculate volume (ml) | 3.40 (2.50–4.40) | 3.20 (2.50–4.00) | 0.12 |
| Sperm concentration (106/ml) | 49.13 (33.01–73.44) | 62.26 (42.63–87.59) | <0.05 |
| Total sperm count (106/ml) | 169.20 (108.40–255.42) | 211.18 (131.00–297.53) | <0.05 |
| Progressive motility (%) | 23.18 (15.93–28.41) | 43.06 (37.85–50.40) | <0.05 |
| Total motility (%) | 29.06 (20.77–35.38) | 53.65 (46.44–62.23) | <0.05 |
| Normal sperm morphology (%) | 5.00 (4.00–7.00) | 6.00 (4.00–8.00) | <0.05 |
| Diet, median (IQR) † | |||
| Total energy intake (kcal/day) | 1731.23 (1401.51–2149.24) | 1683.75 (1400.51–2048.60) | 0.12 |
| Total protein intake (g/day) | 73.96 (68.47–79.56) | 73.91 (68.62–79.37) | 0.92 |
| Total carbohydrate intake (g/day) | 257.71 (236.81–277.03) | 254.63 (233.61–271.78) | <0.05 |
| Total fiber intake (g/day) | 16.81 (14.23–19.58) | 16.46 (13.75–19.51) | 0.17 |
| Cholesterol intake (g/day) | 370.81 (277.69–485.86) | 361.15 (279.77–469.41) | 0.36 |
| Total fat intake (g/day) | 50.27 (44.31–55.83) | 49.47 (45.11–55.65) | 0.96 |
| Animal-based fat intake (g/day) | 26.72 (22.30–31.87) | 27.45 (22.62–32.66) | 0.10 |
| Plant-based fat intake (g/day) | 21.75 (18.55–26.15) | 23.01 (18.97–26.86) | <0.05 |
| Total FA intake (g/day) | 37.86 (33.03–42.91) | 38.71 (34.03–43.37) | 0.23 |
| Total SFA intake (g/day) | 15.05 (12.78–17.31) | 15.37 (13.34–17.47) | 0.08 |
| Short-to-medium-chain SFAa intake (g/day) | 0.71 (0.47–0.97) | 0.67 (0.48–0.91) | 0.30 |
| Long-chain SFAb intake (g/day) | 15.32 (13.25–17.22) | 14.91 (12.68–16.94) | <0.05 |
| Total MUFA intake (g/day) | 15.45 (13.32–17.53) | 15.66 (13.64–17.90) | 0.14 |
| Animal-based MUFA intake (g/day) | 9.66 (7.66–11.78) | 9.33 (7.04–11.00) | <0.05 |
| Plant-based MUFA intake (g/day) | 6.00 (4.77–7.36) | 5.86 (4.53–7.06) | 0.05 |
| Total PUFA intake (g/day) | 6.85 (5.78–8.18) | 6.81 (5.77–7.97) | 0.45 |
| Total omega-3 PUFAc intake (g/day) | 0.80 (0.67–0.99) | 0.81 (0.66–0.97) | 0.88 |
| Total omega-6 PUFAd intake (g/day) | 6.12 (5.03–7.26) | 6.01 (5.07–6.97) | 0.41 |
| Marine omega-3 PUFAe intake (g/day) | 0.06 (0.03–0.11) | 0.06 (0.04–0.10) | 0.61 |
| Omega-6/omega-3 ratio intake | 7.47 (6.73–8.45) | 7.32 (6.68–8.15) | 0.09 |
FA, fatty acid; IQR, interquartile range; MET, metabolic equivalent task; MUFA, monounsaturated fatty acid; PUFA, polyunsaturated fatty acid; SFA, saturated fatty acid.
P values were determined with Kruskal–Wallis test for continuous variables and Chi-square test for categorical variables. All statistical tests are two sided.
Mean score of cases and controls: 593.3 versus 548.0.
Adjusted for energy by the residual method except for total energy intake.
Short-to-medium-chain SFA included saturated butyric (C4), caproic (C6), caprylic (C8), capric (C10), undecanoic (C11), lauric (C12), and tridecanoic (C13) acids.
Long-chain SFA included saturated myristic (C14), pentadecanoic (C15), palmitic (C16), heptadecanoic (C17), stearic (C18), nonadecanoic (C19), arachidic (C20), behenic (C22), and lignoceric (C24) acids.
Total omega-3 PUFA included alpha-linolenic acid, parinaric acid, docosatrienoic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).
Total omega-6 PUFA included linoleic acid, eicosadienoic acid, arachidonic acid, and docosatetraenoic acid.
Marine omega-3 PUFA included eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).