Chinese Researchers Claim "COVID-19 May Attack Male Reproductive Tissue"

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ga-yeon] As the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which originated in Wuhan, China last year, spreads worldwide, a study has revealed that COVID-19 may affect male reproductive ability.

Local media such as Global Times and Pengpai reported on the 18th (local time) that a research team led by Pan Chaibin, a urologist at Suzhou Hospital affiliated with Nanjing Medical University, posted a paper on a medical preprint platform.

The researchers claimed in the paper that COVID-19 has the potential to attack testicular tissue.

According to the report, the research team analyzed the effects on the urinary and male reproductive systems using three previously published clinical data sets.

The researchers emphasized the risk to patients' testicular tissue and urged that patients' reproductive ability should be properly evaluated.

They also added that some patients showed abnormal kidney function or acute kidney injury, suggesting that COVID-19 may also attack the kidneys.

However, the paper has not undergone peer review and has not been officially published.

Meanwhile, according to the National Health Commission of China (NHC) on the 18th, as of midnight, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases nationwide across 31 provinces was 78,436, with 1,868 deaths reported.

The NHC stated that among the confirmed cases, 11,741 were severe patients, and 12,552 had recovered and been discharged.