Fertility among Danish male welders

Abstract

Welding may be detrimental to the male reproductive system. Fertility was examined in a Danish cohort of 3702 male metalworkers over a follow-up of 47674 person-years. Occupational histories were gathered by postal questionnaires. Information on births was obtained by record linkage to the Danish Central Population Register. Among persons who had ever worked as welders, the probability of having a child was slightly reduced the year after a year of welding exposure, even after control for differences in age, birth cohort, paternal parity, birth of a child in the preceding five years, smoking, and consumption of alcohol beverages (odds ratio 0.89, 95% confidence interval 0.83-0.97). The reduction in fertility was associated with the welding of mild steel, but not with the welding of stainless steel. These findings are consistent with results of previous studies of time to conception and semen quality in welders.