Does COVID-19 threaten pregnancy, fertility?

Getting vaccinated against COVID-19 does not reduce the chances of successfully becoming pregnant for couples who are trying to conceive, suggests data from a study by researchers at Boston University. However, men in the study who tested positive for the virus appeared to have at least "a short-term decline in fertility."

The findings were published this week as a manuscript in the American Journal of Epidemiology. They add to a growing body of evidence supporting use of the vaccines to both protect pregnant women and reduce risk to their babies.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as outside medical groups, have urged all people trying to become pregnant to be vaccinated.

The study's authors say they surveyed participants, adult women up to 45 years old who are trying to conceive without the use of fertility treatments, and many of their partners every eight weeks for a year.

A statistical analysis of data collected from the participants found "no meaningful association" between couples who reported COVID-19 vaccination and the likelihood they were able to conceive, compared to unvaccinated participants.

That also held true across a variety of other factors, the researchers said, including vaccination brand and different times of the year.

However, male partners who reported they tested positive for COVID-19 appeared to be associated with "a transient reduction" in the likelihood of conception within 60 days.

Some studies have found at least a temporary drop in the body's production of sperm following a symptomatic infection from SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. That could be as a result of days-long fevers caused by COVID-19, longer than the single day of mild side effects seen after vaccination.

Long a concern for health authorities, rates of COVID-19 vaccination among people who are pregnant or trying to become pregnant have improved in recent months. CDC survey data suggests their vaccination rates now track more closely to those of younger adults overall.

However, concerns over fertility and vaccination persist, pushed in part by misinformation on social media. A survey published in November by the Kaiser Family Foundation found nearly 3 in 10 U.S. adults believe or were unsure about whether vaccines had been shown to cause infertility.