If you're trying to escape news of the coronavirus, chances are you're finding it next to impossible — especially in these last 48 hours. Ever since the World Health Organization labeled the virus as a pandemic, and President Trump declared travel restrictions and containment plans to curb the spread, US residents have been on edge. A new medical report is (understandably) causing more people to be alarmed. According to a leading doctor at Wuhan's Tongji Hospital, which sits at the epicenter of the virus in China, experts have reason to believe the coronavirus may also impact a man's reproductive organs.
The comments were made this week by Professor Li Yufeng, who leads the hospital's Centre for Reproductive Medicine.
Tongji Hospital, the Daily Mail reported, is affiliated with Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and is one of China's government hospitals specifically designated to treat the virus.
So far, most of what we've heard about the deadly respiratory illness is that it impacts the lungs and immune system of infected patients. But from what doctors have observed so far, COVID-19 has many similarities to the severe acute respiratory syndrome virus, or SARS, which wreaked havoc in 2002 and 2003. During that period, "medics observed serious immune system damage in the testicles of some male patients," The Daily Mail reported.
Hence, the sudden concern that this, too, could have a similar impact — particularly because COVID-19 and SARS share the same host cell receptor, known as ACE2.
ACE2 is a converting enzyme in many of the body's organs, but highly concentrated in the testes.
It plays a large role in how the body reacts when the virus strikes.
"The new coronavirus invades cells through the combination of spike protein (S protein) and host cell angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), causing tissue damage," a report by Yufeng's team noted. "In addition to the lung, ACE2 is also expressed in many other organs of the human body, such as the testes, small intestine, kidney, heart, and thyroid. Among them, the testis expresses a large amount of ACE2, mainly concentrated in testicular spermatogonia, support cells and mesenchymal cells, which are closely related to male reproductive function."
To be clear, there have been no official studies conducted so far to prove that the coronavirus does, in fact, harm male reproduction.
But the professor and his team strongly believe the theory could prove true, which is why they are now urging doctors to test male fertility in coronavirus patients who recover from the illness.
"For men who have had the infection, especially those who need to reproduce, it is best to undergo relevant fertility tests, such as sperm quality and hormone level tests, upon recovery to detect possible problems as soon as possible," the hospital report concluded.
In general, there's still a lot we don't know about the coronavirus, experts say, considering it's so new.
The virus only began sweeping China in late December/early January, but has already spread to more than 100 countries throughout the world.Â
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
"The first infections were linked to a live animal market, but the virus is now spreading from person-to-person. Itâs important to note that person-to-person spread can happen on a continuum. Some viruses are highly contagious (like measles), while other viruses are less so.
"The virus that causes COVID-19 seems to be spreading easily and sustainably in the community (âcommunity spreadâ) in some affected geographic areas. Community spread means people have been infected with the virus in an area, including some who are not sure how or where they became infected."
As the virus continues to spread, a few other trends have been standing out, too — namely, that those who are among the most vulnerable appear to be the elderly (older than 60). In China, doctors noted that patients also tended to be male. One silver lining, if you can call it that, is that children appear to be spared from the virus, with very few cases so far being pediatric.
To date, there have been more than 118,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported globally, with 4,300 known deaths.
In the US, there have been approximately 1,000 known cases of the virus so far (and 38 deaths), but with testing kits unavailable to the majority of the public, the truth is that number could be far higher.
In fact, the issue over the lack of testing is part of what's stoking the fears of many Americans and mounting tensions among lawmakers.
âWhat we still don't have is a real sense [of the situation], and this is what's most important to us," Rep. Jim Himes told BuzzFeed News this week. "You can talk to us about reagents and processing capacity, but we still don't have is: Can I tell my constituents that if a doctor recommends, that they can get [a test]? We still don't know that, and that's the important question.â
Still, medical experts are urging the public to remain calm but vigilant.
Timothy Brewer, a professor of epidemiology and medicine at UCLAâs Fielding School of Public Health and David Geffen School of Medicine, recently spoke with the Washington Post and had one message for readers: âDonât panic."
"Thereâs no value in panicking or telling people to be afraid," Brewer assured. "Donât let fear and emotion drive the response to this virus. That can be extremely difficult because it is new, and weâre still learning about it, but donât allow fear of what we donât know about the virus to overwhelm what we do know."
In the meantime, the public is urged to practice "social distancing" (the act of reducing close contact with others), wash their hands religiously (with soap and water, for at least 20 seconds), and avoid interactions with others who might be sick — even if you think it's just a small cold or flu.
