Table 2.
Semen quality of the young men in Finland and Denmark
| Semen parameters | All men (Finland: n = 287, Denmark: n = 873) | Subgroupc (Finland n = 166, Denmark: n = 465) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Observed | Adjusteda | p‐valueb | Observed | Adjusteda | p‐valueb | |||
| Mean (SD) | Median (5th‐95th) | Median (95%CI) | Mean (SD) | Median (5th‐95th) | Median (95%CI) | |||
| Semen volume (mL) | ||||||||
| Finland | 3.2 (1.6) | 3.1 (0.9–6.4) | 2.8 (2.7–3.0) | 0.04 | 3.1 (1.5) | 3.1 (0.8–6.2) | 2.7 (2.5–2.9) | 0.05 |
| Denmark | 3.4 (1.6) | 3.2 (1.3–6.2) | 3.1 (3.0–3.2) | 3.3 (1.5) | 3.1 (1.2–6.2) | 3.0 (2.8–3.1) | ||
| Sperm concentration (×106/mL) | ||||||||
| Finland | 59 (43) | 48 (9–139) | 49 (44–54) | 0.48 | 61 (42) | 51 (11–139) | 53 (46–61) | 0.66 |
| Denmark | 61 (53) | 48 (4–167) | 47 (44–50) | 64 (53) | 52 (5–166) | 51 (47–56) | ||
| Total sperm count (×106) | ||||||||
| Finland | 177 (147) | 146 (14–450) | 148 (132–165) | 0.87 | 175 (128) | 151 (17–454) | 147 (128–169) | 0.78 |
| Denmark | 197 (172) | 146 (13–541) | 146 (137–156) | 202 (171) | 157 (15–562) | 151 (139–163) | ||
| Percent normal morphology (%) | ||||||||
| Finland | 7.5 (4.3) | 6.5 (1.5–16.0) | 6.9 (6.3–7.5) | 0.27 | 7.7 (4.3) | 7.0 (2.0–16.0) | 6.9 (6.2–7.7) | 0.23 |
| Denmark | 7.5 (4.8) | 7.0 (0.5–16.0) | 6.5 (6.2–6.8) | 7.5 (4.8) | 7.0 (0.5–16.0) | 6.4 (6.0–6.8) | ||
| Percent A+B+C sperm motility (%) | ||||||||
| Finland | 77 (16) | 82 (40–92) | 80 (78–81) | <0.001 | 78 (15) | 83 (48–92) | 80 (78–82) | <0.001 |
| Denmark | 67 (14) | 70 (40–87) | 69 (68–70) | 67 (14) | 69 (39–87) | 69 (67–70) | ||
| Percent A+B sperm motility (%) | ||||||||
| Finland | 68 (18) | 75 (21–86) | 70 (68–72) | <0.001 | 69 (18) | 75 (21–86) | 71 (68–73) | <0.001 |
| Denmark | 57 (16) | 59 (28–79) | 57 (56–59) | 57 (16) | 59 (27–79) | 57 (56–59) | ||
| Total number of morphologically normal spermatozoa (×106) | ||||||||
| Finland | 14 (17) | 10 (0–43) | 11 (9–13) | 0.38 | 14 (15) | 9 (0–43) | 10 (9–13) | 0.69 |
| Denmark | 17 (21) | 10 (0–60) | 10 (9–11) | 18 (21) | 10 (0–64) | 10 (9–11) | ||
| Total number of A+B motile spermatozoa (×106) | ||||||||
| Finland | 132 (114) | 104 (3–336) | 106 (94–120) | 0.001 | 128 (99) | 103 (4–337) | 103 (89–119) | 0.04 |
| Denmark | 119 (109) | 89 (5–342) | 84 (78–90) | 121 (108) | 91 (6–344) | 86 (78–94) | ||
| Abstinence duration (h) | ||||||||
| Finland | 69 (24) | 65 (39–117) | 0.02d | 67 (22) | 63 (37–112) | 0.001d | ||
| Denmark | 74 (34) | 63 (36–137) | 76 (34) | 65 (36–135) | ||||
| Time from ejaculation to analysis (min) | ||||||||
| Finland | 45 (21) | 45 (20–80) | 0.003d | 45 (22) | 45 (20–80) | 0.02d | ||
| Denmark | 41 (22) | 35 (15–85) | 40 (23) | 35 (15–90) | ||||
Semen parameters were adjusted for abstinence duration and age. In addition, percentages of sperm motility were also adjusted for the time from ejaculation to start of semen analysis. The adjusted estimates of the analysis of all men represented men at the mean age of 19.4 years with the mean abstinence duration of 73 h and mean time from ejaculation to start of semen analysis of 42 min.
p‐Value shown here is the p‐value of the differences of the adjusted semen parameters between the two countries.
Subgroup analysis included men who did not take any medications, androgenic hormones, without any past or current andrological diseases, or fertility problem (trying to conceive for more than 12 months without success).
Student's t‐test. p‐Values are the differences of mean levels between countries.