SEATTLE — A new study from researchers at the University of Washington Medicine suggests that wildfire smoke exposure may reduce key measures of sperm quality in patients undergoing fertility treatments.

The research, published in Fertility and Sterility, focuses on an analysis of semen samples from 84 men who provided sperm for intrauterine insemination procedures between 2018 and 2022. Major wildfire smoke events in the Seattle area occurred in 2018, 2020 and 2022.

By comparing semen analyses collected before and during wildfire seasons, the researchers were able to track changes in sperm health.

“This study takes advantage of our institution’s location in the Puget Sound region, where wildfire smoke events create distinct pre- and post-exposure periods in a natural experiment to e

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