Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 17, 2026

Author Spotlight: Obtaining High-Quality CSF and Blood Samples for Epilepsy Biomarker Discovery
Published on: September 1, 2023
A retrospective cohort study of valproate and infertility in men with epilepsy or bipolar disorder using
Gashirai K Mbizvo1,2,3,4, Susan E Duncan5, Lewis Nancarrow6,7
1Liverpool Centre for Cardiovascular Science at University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores University and Liverpool Heart & Chest Hospital, Liverpool, L69 7TX, United Kingdom. Gashirai.Mbizvo@liverpool.ac.uk.
Abstract:
Valproate is highly effective at treating epilepsy and bipolar disorder. It faces prescribing restrictions in men due to concerns it causes testicular dysfunction and infertility. These mostly stem from animal models - the human evidence is limited and conflicting. We report the largest ever retrospective cohort study of infertility in men with epilepsy or bipolar disorder, using real-world healthcare data from TriNetX. 91,917 of the men are exposed to valproate, and 535,803 unexposed. Cohorts are propensity score matched for a comprehensive set of baseline covariates, and survival analysis is undertaken using Cox-proportional hazards models. No significant difference is seen between valproate-exposed and unexposed men across lifetime risks of infertility, testicular hypofunction, testicular atrophy, and a composite of low sperm concentration, motility, vitality, normal forms, and semen volume (p > 0.05). Our findings do not support an association between valproate and infertility in men with epilepsy or bipolar disorder in real-world settings.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Electroconvulsive Therapy
Epilepsy and Seizures: Overview
Various factors can trigger epilepsy, including genetic factors, brain damage, metabolic causes, and unknown etiology. Diagnosis of epilepsy involves electroencephalography (EEG), which...
Infertility in Males
Mania and Antimanic Drugs: Overview
Antiepileptic Drugs: Potassium Channel Activators
Ezogabine has gained approval as an adjunctive treatment...
Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast,...

