The Global State of Contemporary Andrology Practice: A Comprehensive Analysis of Clinical Practice, Training Pathways, and Emerging Challenges
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: PURPOSE: This study evaluates the current state of andrology practice worldwide, identifies challenges faced by clinicians, and explores training, certification, and research opportunities. It also seeks to redefine the qualifications necessary to be recognized as an andrologist and to propose areas for standardization and improvement. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A global, cross-sectional survey was conducted using a 48-question online questionnaire designed by international experts. The survey, distributed in English, covered various domains of modern andrology practice. Responses from 405 participants across 59 countries were analyzed using R version 4.1.2, with categorical variables reported as frequencies and percentages. RESULTS: Among respondents, 47.3% held medical doctor (MD) degrees, with urologists (31.1%) and clinical andrologists (25.3%) being the most represented specialties. Formal, board-certified andrological training was reported as available in only 48.1% of countries. While half of the respondents identified as andrologists based on experience, only one-third did so through certification, obtained from diverse, nationally recognized organizations. The primary areas of practice included male infertility (36.7%), male sexual dysfunction (27.2%), and sexually transmitted infections (14.5%). Many participants were actively engaged in assisted reproductive technologies, imaging, and andrological surgical emergencies. Despite strong interest in clinical, basic, and translational research, respondents highlighted significant challenges, including inconsistent training pathways, insufficient certification standards, and the complexity of managing diverse andrological conditions. CONCLUSIONS: Andrology is an evolving multidisciplinary specialty where board-certified urologists, clinical andrologists, and reproductive medicine specialists collaborate to address male reproductive and sexual health challenges. Despite their advanced competencies in medical, surgical, and laboratory interventions, specialists face significant global disparities in training and certification. This survey highlights the urgent need for standardized training, evidence-based guidelines, and unified certification to ensure consistency, enhance patient care, and advance andrology's academic and clinical excellence worldwide.
DOI: 10.5534/wjmh.250039
Authors: Rupin Shah, Taymour Mostafa, Manaf Al Hashimi, Germar-Michael Pinggera, Wael Zohdy, Bahadır Şahin, Hiva Alipour, Ayad Faeq Palani, Mohamed Arafa, Eric Chung, Ayman Rashed, Edmund Ko, Baris Altay, Amarnath Rambhatla, Tuncay Toprak, Hussein Kandil, Edoardo Pescatori, Ahmed El-Sakka, Haitham Ali Elbardisi, Juan Manuel Corral Molina, Marco Falcone, Edouard Harry Amar, Taiwo Crossby Omotoriogun, Selcuk Sarikaya, Nguyen Ho Vinh Phuoc, Mounir Jamali, Oğuzhan Kahraman, Ahmet Cihan, Sava Micic, Muslim Dogan Deger, Muhammad Ujudud Musa, Gökhan Çeker, Umut Cagin Ari, Cevahir Ozer, Huda Mossa Omran, Saleh Binsaleh, Rossella Cannarella, Mohamad Ahmad Moussa, Iman Shamohammadi, Andrian Japari, Francesco Gaggia, Aria Danurdoro, Nasser Mogharabian, Mohamed Elmahdy Toiema, Hisanori Taniguchi, Missy Savira, Christopher Chee Kong Ho, Keerti Singh, Manh Truong Nguyen, Parviz K. Kavoussi, Shingai Bertrand Angelo Mutambirwa, Ishan Merchant, Dharani Moorthy, Vijay Kumar, Arif Kalkanli, Faiza Rao, Fatih Gokalp, Nicolas Garrido, Charalampos Konstantinidis, David Pening, Sedigheh Bahmyari, Parisa Dolati, Aldo E. Calogero, Ramadan Saleh, Birute Zilaitiene, Giorgio Ivan Russo, Nadia Kazdar, Ricky Adriansjah, Gianmaria Salvio, Giancarlo Balercia, Catalina Zenoaga-Barbarosie, Balantine Ugochukwu Eze, Widi Atmoko, Deniz Kulaksiz, Amina Benabbou, Siu King Mak, Luca Boeri, Sang Thanh Le, Ajay Kumar Jain, Amr El Meliegy, Kadir Böcü, Nur Dokuzeylül Güngör, Gokhan Calik, Konstantinos Makarounis, Mesut Berkan Duran, Hisham Ahmed Arab, Luigi Montano, Gulfam Ahmad, Trang Thi Minh Nguyen, Hyun Jun Park, Eko Arianto, Krishna Chaitanya Mantravadi, Andrea Crafa, Tahsin Turunc, Fotios Dimitriadis, Umut Arslan, Sk. Mizanur Rahman, Andri Rezano, Ryan Patrick Smith, Erman Ceyhan, Naveen Kumar, Dyandra Parikesit, Mehmet Serkan Özkent, Rosadi Putra, Haocheng Lin, Osvaldo Rajmil, Sanjay Prakash Jayaprakash, Tan V. Le, Satish Pundlik Dipankar, Charalampos Thomas, Carlo Giulioni, Danh Cong Nguyen, Vinod K V, Zaid Qureshi, Filippo Giacone, Ashish Reddy, Sujoy Dasgupta, Divyanu Jain, Ciro Salzano, Federica Finocchi Finocchi, Lucia Rocco, Ateş Kadıoğlu, Akeem Babatunde Sikiru, Ali Said Kilicalp, Mezbahul Moker Rabin, Giovanni Liguori, Jose Arturo Mora Rodriguez, Jesus Fernando Solorzano Vazquez, Angelo Alessandro Marino, Taha Hamoda, Vilvapathy Senguttuvan Karthikeyan, Bircan Kolbaşı Erkan, Mikhail Ruzaev, Manel Nezzal, Giovanni M. Colpi, Fahmi Bahar, Tamilselvi Sethupathy, Guadalupe del Carmen Hernández Hebrard, Mohamed S. Al-Marhoon, Ahmad Tarek Motawi, Sotiris Andreadakis, Coskun Kaya, Alessandro Franceschelli, Fikri Rizaldi, Shubhadeep Roychoudhury, Pedro Cuapio Padilla, Ahmad Ateyah Awwad, Daniel Suslik Zylbersztejn, Nazim Gherabi, Abdallah Bensouda, Naufal Nandita Firsty, Giorgio Franco, Neha Shreyas Goswami, B. Aanantha Lakshmi, Frédéric Romain Santer, Ege Can Serefoglu, Vahid Esmaeili, Ioannis Sokolakis, Mustafa Kadihasanoglu, Marion Bendayan, Petronela Naghi, Sofia Ines Leonardi Diaz, Saviana Adriana Buhlea, Alireza Kheradmand, Tulay Irez, Tiago Cesar Mierzwa, Silvia Werdhy Lestari, Riffat Bibi, Quang Nguyen, Ranjit Babulal Vishwakarma, Pietro Salacone, Stamatis Papaharitou, Saad Mohammed Abumelha, Elango Kamaraj, Robyn Amanda Van Staden, Damayanthi Durairajanayagam, Ramazan Asci, Gustavo Marquesine Paul, Abiodun Oyerinde, Akhmad Mustafa, Chirag Gupta, Yudhistira Pradnyan Kloping, Marjan Sabbaghian, Isaac Ardianson Deswanto, Moungala Lionel Wildy, Teng Aik Ong, Sann Lin Ko, Sheryl Toni Homa, Rahul Gajbhiye, Mara Simopoulou, Mohamed Abdelfatah Farag, Vineet Malhotra, Ekom Monday Etukudo, Hazem Meteb Al-Rumaih, Ninad Chandrakant Tamboli, Awaj Kafle, Mohamed Elkhouly, Ashok Agarwal
Institutions: Lilavati Hospital & Research Centre, Cairo University, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi Health Services, Innsbruck Medical University, Universität Innsbruck, Marmara University, Aalborg University, University of Garmian, Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Weill Cornell Medicine, Hamad Medical Corporation, The University of Queensland, Princess Alexandra Hospital, October 6 University, Kaiser Permanente, Kaiser Permanente Fontana Medical Center, Ege University, Henry Ford Health, Henry Ford Hospital, Michigan State University, Sağlık Bilimleri Üniversitesi, Fatih Sultan Mehmet Eğitim Ve Araştırma Hastanesi, GynePro Medical, Suez Canal University, Qatar University, Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, Biruni University, University of Turin, Hôpital américain de paris, Elizade University, Gülhane Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Bệnh viện Bình Dân, Başkent University, Uromedica Polyclinic, İstanbul Başakşehir Çam ve Sakura Şehir Hastanesi, Kafkas University, Arabian Gulf University, King Saud University, Cleveland Clinic, University of Catania, Lebanese University, Shiraz University, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, University of Perugia, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Assiut University Hospitals, Assiut University, Kansai Medical University, University of Indonesia, Rumah Sakit Umum Pusat Nasional Dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo, Taylor's University, University of the West Indies, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Texas Fertility Center, Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, Shalby Hospitals, Kurukshetra University, Mustafa Kemal University, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria La Fe, IVIRMA Global, Fundación IVI, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Erasmus Hospital, Sohag University, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Dr. Hasan Sadikin General Hospital, Padjadjaran University, Marche Polytechnic University, University of Bucharest, Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Université Djilali de Sidi Bel Abbès, Union Hospital, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Jaipur Golden Hospital, Niğde Ömer Halisdemir Üniversitesi, Bahçeşehir University, Bahçeci Sağlık Grubu, Istanbul Medipol University, Pamukkale University, Azienda Sanitaria Locale Salerno, Royal Children's Hospital, The University of Melbourne, University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan National University, Sam Ratulangi University, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Jahangirnagar University, University of Virginia, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna, Konya City Hospital, Tarumanagara University, Peking University, Peking University Third Hospital, Universitat de Vic - Universitat Central de Catalunya, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Hospital de Sant Pau, Puigvert Foundation, Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Mangalagiri, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, Max Super Speciality Hospital, Max Healthcare, University of Padua, Azienda Ospedale - Università Padova, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Istanbul University, Federal University of Agriculture Zuru, Ankara Atatürk Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Bangladesh Medical University, Rangpur Medical College, University of Trieste, Andros Clinica Day Surgery, King Abdulaziz University, Minia University, Apollo Hospitals, Apollo Hospitals, Siberian State Medical University, Universitas Muhammadiyah Palembang, Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, University of Ioannina, Eskişehir City Hospital, IRCCS Azienda Ospedliero-Universitaria di Bologna Policlinico di Sant'Orsola, University of Bologna, Universitas Airlangga, Assam University, Hospital Español, Fleury S.A. (Brazil), University of Algiers Benyoucef Benkhedda, Universitas Sumatera Utara, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, Royan Institute, Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement, Centre Hospitalier Intercommunal de Poissy, Biologie de la Reproduction, Environnement, Epigénétique et Développement, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Istanbul Yeni Yüzyıl University, Quaid-i-Azam University, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Viet Duc Hospital, VNU University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ospedale Santa Maria Goretti, King Abdulaziz Medical City, The University of Texas at San Antonio Health Science Center, Universitat de València, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Ondokuz Mayıs University, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Lead City University, Jaipur National University, Academic Center for Education, Culture and Research, University of Malaya, Defence Services Medical Academy, University of Kent, National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Kampala International University, Jahra Hospital, B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dubai Health Authority, Dubai Hospital
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
Funder: Arab Association of Urology
OpenAlex ID: W4411770588