Phthalates are reproductive toxicants in experimental animal studies and exposure has been associated with infertility in human populations, although the results have been inconsistent. To help to address the data gap, we conducted a hypothesis-generating investigation of associations between urinary phthalate metabolites and reproductive outcomes among women (n = 56) and their male partners (n = 43) undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF). Urine was collected from participants on the day of oocyte retrieval. Samples were analyzed for a series of phthalates, MEP, MBP, MPP, MHxP, MEHP, MEHHP, MECPP, MiNP, MiDP, MCHP, and MBzP, using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. We employed Poisson regression with robust variance estimation to estimate associations between urinary phthalate levels and biochemical pregnancy and live birth, adjusted for partner’s concentration and confounding factors. Doublings in women’s MBP (relative risk (RR) = 0.32, 95 % CI: 0.13, 0.78), and men’s MEHP (RR = 0.28, 95 % CI: 0.09, 0.83), were associated with a lower likelihood for pregnancy. Doublings in women’s (RR = 0.08, 95 % CI: 0.01, 0.67) and men’s (RR = 0.13, 95 % CI: 0.02, 0.92) MHxP were associated with a lower likelihood of live birth. Our results suggest that phthalate exposure may impact IVF outcomes, and underscore the importance of including male partners when investigating the impact of phthalate exposure on IVF. These results also suggest that clinical recommendations should include male partners for limiting phthalate exposure. Still, a larger and more comprehensive investigation is necessary to more definitively assess the risks.

在实验动物研究中，邻苯二甲酸盐是生殖毒物，接触与人类不育有关，尽管结果不一致。为了帮助解决数据差距，我们对女性（n = 56）及其男性伴侣（n = 43）进行体外邻苯二甲酸酯代谢物与生殖结果之间的关联进行了假设生成调查。受精（IVF）。在取卵当天收集参与者的尿液。使用液相色谱-串联质谱法对样品中的一系列邻苯二甲酸酯、MEP、MBP、MPP、MHxP、MEHP、MEHHP、MECPP、MiNP、MiDP、MCHP 和 MBzP 进行了分析。我们采用具有稳健方差估计的泊松回归来估计尿邻苯二甲酸酯水平与生化妊娠和活产之间的关联，并根据伴侣的浓度和混杂因素进行调整。女性 MBP（相对风险 (RR) = 0.32, 95% CI: 0.13, 0.78）和男性 MEHP（RR = 0.28, 95% CI: 0.09, 0.83）的倍增与较低的怀孕可能性相关。女性 (RR = 0.08, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.67) 和男性 (RR = 0.13, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.92) MHxP 的加倍与较低的活产可能性相关。我们的结果表明，邻苯二甲酸盐暴露可能会影响试管婴儿的结果，并强调在调查邻苯二甲酸盐暴露对试管婴儿的影响时包括男性伴侣的重要性。这些结果还表明，临床建议应包括限制邻苯二甲酸酯暴露的男性伴侣。尽管如此，为了更明确地评估风险，还需要进行更大规模、更全面的调查。