Calcium Channel Blocker Causing Infertility?

I'm a 33 yo male on a combination of Diovan HCT 320/25 and Norvasc (Amlodipine) 2.5mg daily to control high blood pressure.

My wife and I have been trying to conceive for 6 months now, with no success.  We've been researching my medications to see if there could be a problem with them and came across a couple studies and forum postings talking about calcium channel blockers possibly interfering with the sperm's ability to fertilize the egg.  Norvasc is listed as one of the CCB's.  There was one posting that went so far as to discuss the possibility of using a CCB as a form of birth control.

What I read says that after some people had stopped taking CCB's, they were able to conceive within a couple months.

I talked to my family doctor today and he had never heard of any such side effect and didn't think it would be a good idea to change my medications since they are working so well at controlling my blood pressure.  He is sending me for a sperm analysis, so I suppose I'll wait and see what the results of that are and at least rule out other issues.

I know that there could be numerous other issues with both myself and my wife that could be preventing us from conceiving, and I also know that 6 months isn't a very long time to be trying, especially since it would be our first child, but I want to rule out any possible problems.

I would like to know if the CCB that I'm taking could possibly be preventing fertilization from happening, and if so, any suggestions as to my next course of action would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

[Elaine Brown, MD]

Hi!
I do find reports in the literature suggesting that calcium channel blockers may interfere with the ability of the sperm to fertilize eggs.  It seems to have to do with sperm capacitation and penetration of the zona pellucida of the egg.
A standard semen analysis is not going to show this problem.
Because the solution to this problem is In Vitro Fertilization with ICSI, I would rule out all other possibilities before settling on this as the diagnosis.
In the mean time, if you can use another type of medication that works equally well to control blood pressure, you might want to switch. IF this is actually your issue, it may take up to 3 months for it to resolve. (It takes about 3 months to manufacture new sperms).
Good luck!
Dr B