Drug-induced infertility

Primary infertility may result from the use of various drugs. This phenomenon may be the result of an effect on the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis or a direct toxic effect on the gonads. Some of the drugs considered in this article demonstrate sex-related differences in their ability to cause infertility; there also may be age-related differences. The drugs described in this review, in regard to their association with the development of infertility, include various individual antineoplastic agents (cyclophosphamide, chlorambucil, busulphan, and methotrexate) and combinations of these chemotherapeutic drugs, glucocorticosteroids, hormonal steroids (diethylstilbestrol, medroxyprogesterone acetate, estrogen, and the constituents of oral contraceptives), antibiotics (sulfasalazine and co-trimoxazole), thyroid supplements, spironolactone, cimetidine, colchicine, marihuana, opiates, and neuroleptic agents.