Table II.

Adjusted^a results from the regression analyses (β coefficients) with 95% confidence intervals of semen quality by total alcohol intake among young men (group A) and fertile men (group B) according to alcohol intake the week prior to the visit.

Alcohol intake the week prior to the visit (units)	Semen volume ml		Sperm concentrationb mill/ml		Total sperm countb mill		% motile spermatozoac		% morphologically normal spermatozoad
Young men (group A, N = 6472) Adjusteda difference from reference group in semen variables (sperm concentration and total sperm count as percentage)
0	−0.1	−0.2; 0.1	−0.7	−8.2; 7.6	−0.9	−9.5; 8.4	−0.7	−1.7; 0.4	0.2	−0.2; 0.6
1–10	Reference		Reference		Reference		Reference		Reference
11–20	0.0	−0.1; 0.1	3.6	−3.4; 11.2	6.8	−1.4; 15.7	0.0	−1.0; 0.9	−0.5	−0.9; −0.2
>20	0.1	0.0; 0.2	2.7	−5.0; 11.0	5.8	−3.1; 15.6	−0.4	−1.5; 0.6	−0.2	−0.5; 0.2
Fertile men (group B, N = 1872) Adjusteda difference from reference group in semen variables (sperm concentration and total sperm count as percentage)
0	0.0	−0.2; 0.2	−11.4	−19.3; −2.8	−11.2	−19.9; −1.7	−0.4	−1.7; 0.9	−0.4	−1.0; 0.3
1–10	Reference		Reference		Reference		Reference		Reference
11–20	−0.1	−0.3; 0.2	3.2	−8.0; 15.5	−0.3	−12.0; 13.0	1.5	−0.1; 3.1	−0.3	−1.1; 0.5
>20	0.0	−0.3; 0.3	2.7	−10.5; 17.8	1.1	−13.2; 17.6	2.8	0.9; 4.8	0.1	−0.9; 1.0

^aAdjusted for center, age, season, period of abstinence adjusted to 96 h, BMI, current smoking, genital surgery, urogenital infections and cryptorchidism (with or without spontaneous descent), for sperm motility time from delivery until evaluation of the sample and, for young men, in utero exposure to smoking.

^bSperm concentration and total sperm count transformed by the use of natural logarithm and back transformed giving the percentage change.

^cMotile sperm was defined as the sum of class A, B or C.

^dMorphology counted by Strict criteria among 5089 young men from the general population.