Antidepressant medications, mood and male fertility

By modulating the activity of central neurotransmitters, psychotropic agents may affect reproductive functioning in men and women. Many neurotransmitters influence the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis and can consequently affect menstrual cycling in women and spermatogenesis in men. Emotional state similarly may disrupt reproductive functioning through the effects of stress hormones on the HPG axis. While some data exist on the relationship between stress and menstrual cyclicity in women of reproductive age, little is known regarding the potential effect of emotional state on reproductive function in men. This paper will review: (1) aspects of male reproductive function that may be vulnerable to medication-induced influences; (2) the impact of emotional state on male reproductive function; and (3) the literature on the possible effects of antidepressant medications on male fertility.