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Common Male Reproductive Tract Pathologies Associated with Physical Activity, Exercise, and Sport

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Exercise and Human Reproduction

Abstract

Elite athletes are increasingly undergoing greater levels of exercise training in order to maintain a higher degree of competitiveness. The stress of such training is necessary for improvement in the cardiorespiratory and musculoskeletal systems leading to enhanced performance. The reproductive and endocrine systems are particularly sensitive to the amount of training stress an athlete undergoes, and regrettably these systems can develop disruption and dysfunctions if the stress is excessive. Male hypogonadism, modifications in sexual function, varicocele, and alterations in semen parameters are possible consequences of high levels of training stresses. Furthermore, aspects of sports injuries (e.g., spinal trauma) or sports practice (e.g., cycling seat parameters) can also impact on testicular physiology and reproductive function. This chapter focuses on the existing relationships between exercise training, injuries, and sports practice and their influence on the sexual functionality of the male reproductive endocrine system.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Allied Health Sciences, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

    Amy R. Lane BS, MA

  2. Department of Urology and Reproduction, Insemine Human Reproduction Center, Nilo Peçanha 2825/905, 91330-001, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

    Alberto Da Costa Stein PhD

  3. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Rio Grand do Sul, Brazil

    Vanessa Krebs Genro PhD

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  1. Amy R. Lane BS, MA
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  2. Alberto Da Costa Stein PhD
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  3. Vanessa Krebs Genro PhD
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Correspondence to Alberto Da Costa Stein PhD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Morphological Sciences, University of Cordoba Department of Morphological Sciences, Cordoba, Spain

    Diana Vaamonde

  2. Division of Medical Physiology, Stellenbosch University , Tygerberg, South Africa

    Stefan S du Plessis

  3. Cleveland Clinic Foundation, American Centre for Reproductive Medicin Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio, USA

    Ashok Agarwal

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Lane, A., Da Costa Stein, A., Genro, V. (2016). Common Male Reproductive Tract Pathologies Associated with Physical Activity, Exercise, and Sport. In: Vaamonde, D., du Plessis, S., Agarwal, A. (eds) Exercise and Human Reproduction. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-3402-7_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-3402-7_9

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