The experience of infertility: A review of recent literature
01 Jan 2010-Sociology of Health and Illness (SOCIOLOGY OF HEALTH AND ILLNESS)-Vol. 32, Iss: 1, pp 140-162
TL;DR: Examination of research published since the last review of the literature on the socio-psychological impact of infertility concludes that more attention is now being paid to the ways in which the experience of infertility is shaped by social context.
Abstract: About 10 years ago Greil published a review and critique of the literature on the socio-psychological impact of infertility. He found at the time that most scholars treated infertility as a medical condition with psychological consequences rather than as a socially constructed reality. This article examines research published since the last review. More studies now place infertility within larger social contexts and social scientific frameworks although clinical emphases persist. Methodological problems remain but important improvements are also evident. We identify two vigorous research traditions in the social scientific study of infertility. One tradition uses primarily quantitative techniques to study clinic patients in order to improve service delivery and to assess the need for psychological counselling. The other tradition uses primarily qualitative research to capture the experiences of infertile people in a sociocultural context. We conclude that more attention is now being paid to the ways in which the experience of infertility is shaped by social context. We call for continued progress in the development of a distinctly sociological approach to infertility and for the continued integration of the two research traditions identified here.
Citations
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TL;DR: Delaying childbearing based on incorrect perceptions of female fertility could lead to involuntary childlessness and it is necessary to help men and women make informed reproductive decisions that are based on accurate information rather than incorrect perceptions.
Abstract: background: In the USA, the postponement of childbearing reflects contemporary social norms of delaying marriage, pursing educational goals and securing economic stability prior to attempting conception Although university students are more likely to delay childbearing, it is unclear to what extent they are aware of age-related fertility decline The current study is the first of its kind to assess fertility awareness and parenting attitudes of American undergraduate university students methods: Two-hundred forty-six randomly selected undergraduate university students (138 females and 108 males) completed an online self-report survey adapted from the Swedish Fertility Awareness Questionnaire Students were evenly distributed between the freshman, sophomore, junior and senior classes with a mean age of 204 years results: Participants wanted to have their first and last child within the window of a woman’s fertility However, participants demonstrated a lack of fertility awareness by vastly overestimating the age at which women experience declines in fertility, the likelihood of pregnancy following unprotected intercourse and the chances that IVF treatments would be successful in the case of infertility Nearly 9 in 10 participants want to have children in the future and viewed parenthood as a highly important aspect of their future lives conclusions: Delaying childbearing based on incorrect perceptions of female fertility could lead to involuntary childlessness Education regarding fertility issues is necessary to help men and women make informed reproductive decisions that are based on accurate information rather than incorrect perceptions
232 citations
Cites background from "The experience of infertility: A re..."
...This unexpected event can lead to significant alterations in a couple’s family and social networks, strain on the marital relationship and emotional as well as physical challenges associated with fertility treatments (Peterson et al., 2009; Greil et al., 2010)....
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TL;DR: On the contrary, weight loss programs through lifestyle modification in obese women, have been proven to restore menstrual cyclicity and ovulation and improve the likelihood of conception.
Abstract: Both obesity and overweight are increasing worldwide and have detrimental influences on several human body functions including the reproductive health. In particular, obese women undergo perturbations of the ‘hypothalamic pituitary ovarian axis’, and frequently suffer of menstrual dysfunction leading to anovulation and infertility. Besides the hormone disorders and subfertility that are common in the polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), in obesity the adipocytes act as endocrine organ. The adipose tissue indeed, releases a number of bioactive molecules, namely adipokines, that variably interact with multiple molecular pathways of insulin resistance, inflammation, hypertension, cardiovascular risk, coagulation, and oocyte differentiation and maturation. Moreover, endometrial implantation and other reproductive functions are affected in obese women with complications including delayed conceptions, increased miscarriage rate, reduced outcomes in assisted conception treatments. On the contrary, weight loss programs through lifestyle modification in obese women, have been proven to restore menstrual cyclicity and ovulation and improve the likelihood of conception.
227 citations
Cites background from "The experience of infertility: A re..."
...In a series of studies it has been indeed described that infertile women are more likely to experience higher levels of psychological distress [10], as well as high levels of reactive depression [11], and increased likelihood of anxiety [12]....
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TL;DR: The aim of this review was to synthesize the English-language evidence related to the psychological and social aspects of infertility in men and discuss the implications of these reports for clinical care and future research.
Abstract: Research concerning the psychosocial aspects of infertility and infertility treatment focuses more often on women than men. The aim of this review was to synthesize the English-language evidence related to the psychological and social aspects of infertility in men and discuss the implications of these reports for clinical care and future research. A structured search identified 73 studies that reported data concerning the desire for fatherhood and the psychological and social aspects of diagnosis, assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatment and unsuccessful treatment among men with fertility difficulties. The studies are diverse in conceptualisation, design, setting and data collection, but the findings were reasonably consistent. These studies indicated that fertile and infertile childless men of reproductive age have desires to experience parenthood that are similar to those of their female counterparts; in addition, diagnosis and initiation of treatment are associated with elevated infertility-specific anxiety, and unsuccessful treatment can lead to a state of lasting sadness. However, rates of clinically significant mental health problems among this patient population are no higher than in the general population. Infertile men who are socially isolated, have an avoidant coping style and appraise stressful events as overwhelming, are more vulnerable to severe anxiety than men without these characteristics. Men prefer oral to written treatment information and prefer to receive emotional support from infertility clinicians rather than from mental health professionals, self-help support groups or friends. Nevertheless, structured, facilitated psycho-educational groups that are didactic but permit informal sharing of experiences might be beneficial. There are gaps in knowledge about factors governing seeking, persisting with and deciding to cease treatment; experiences of invasive procedures; parenting after assisted conception; adoption and infertility-related grief and shame among men. Few resource-constrained countries have any data concerning male experiences of infertility.
192 citations
Book•
25 Mar 2012
TL;DR: In this paper, Hamza, my infertile driver, discusses the emergence of Masculinities in the Middle East and their relation to assisted reproduction in Islam and assisted reproduction fatwas.
Abstract: List of Figures ix List of Tables xi Prologue: Hamza, My Infertile Driver xiii Introduct ion: Reconceiving Middle Eastern Manhood Part I : Emergent Masculini t ies Chapter 1. Hegemonic Masculinity 39 Chapter 2. Infertile Subjectivities 63 Chapter 3. Love Stories 91 Chapter 4. Consanguineous Connectivity 123 Part II : Islamic Masculini t ies Chapter 5. Masturbation and Semen Collection 161 Chapter 6. Islam and Assisted Reproduction 193 Chapter 7. Sperm Donation and Adoption 228 Chapter 8. Egg Donation and Emergence 262 Conclus ion: Emergent Masculinities in the Middle East 299 Acknowledgments 319 Appendix: The Assisted Reproduction Fatwas 325 Glossary of Arabic Terms 333 Glossary of Medical Terms 337 Notes 345 References Cited 363 Index 389
162 citations
TL;DR: For infertile couples, resilience can be considered as an unspecific protective factor against infertility-specific distress and impaired quality of life.
Abstract: Objective
Our hypothesis was that resilience (=psychosocial stress-resistance) reduces infertility-specific distress and maintains quality of life of infertile couples.
159 citations
References
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01 Jan 2007
TL;DR: The current evidence indicates a 9% prevalence of infertility (of 12 months) with 56% of couples seeking medical care, lower than those typically cited and remarkably similar between more and less developed countries.
Abstract: INTRODUCTION: The purpose of the present study was to review existing population surveys on the prevalence of infertilityandproportionofcouplesseekingmedicalhelpforfertilityproblems.METHODS:Populationsurveys,reporting the prevalence of infertility and proportion of couples seeking help in more and less developed countries, were reviewed. RESULTS: Estimates on the prevalence of infertility came from 25 population surveys sampling 172 413 women. The 12-month prevalence rate ranged from 3.5% to 16.7% in more developed nations and from 6.9% to 9.3% in less-developed nations, with an estimated overall median prevalence of 9%. In 17 studies sampling 6410 women, the proportion of couples seeking medial care was, on average, 56.1% (range 42–76.3%) in more developed countries and 51.2% (range 27–74.1%) in less developed countries. The proportion of people actually receiving care was substantially less, 22.4%. Based on these estimates and on the current world population, 72.4 million women are currently infertile; of these, 40.5 million are currently seeking infertility medical care. CONCLUSIONS: The current evidence indicates a 9% prevalence of infertility (of 12 months) with 56% of couples seeking medical care. These estimates are lower than those typically cited and are remarkably similar between more and less developed countries.
1,701 citations
"The experience of infertility: A re..." refers background in this paper
...Even in nations where access to infertility treatment is guaranteed by the state there are still many couples who do not seek treatment (Boivin et al. 2007)....
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...Although rates of seeking help for infertility are comparable in developed and less developed societies (Boivin et al. 2007), access to care is much more severely limited in developing societies (Kielman 1998, Nachtigall 2005, Ombelet et al. 2008, van Balen and Gerrits 2001)....
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...Although rates of seeking help for infertility are comparable in developed and less developed societies (Boivin et al. 2007), access to care is much more severely limited in developing societies (Kielman 1998, Nachtigall 2005, Ombelet et al....
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TL;DR: In this paper, a review of existing population surveys on the prevalence of infertility and proportion of couples seeking medical help for fertility problems is presented, with an estimated overall median prevalence of 9%.
Abstract: INTRODUCTION The purpose of the present study was to review existing population surveys on the prevalence of infertility and proportion of couples seeking medical help for fertility problems.
METHODS Population surveys, reporting the prevalence of infertility and proportion of couples seeking help in more and less developed countries, were reviewed.
RESULTS Estimates on the prevalence of infertility came from 25 population surveys sampling 172 413 women. The 12-month prevalence rate ranged from 3.5% to 16.7% in more developed nations and from 6.9% to 9.3% in less-developed nations, with an estimated overall median prevalence of 9%. In 17 studies sampling 6410 women, the proportion of couples seeking medial care was, on average, 56.1% (range 42–76.3%) in more developed countries and 51.2% (range 27–74.1%) in less developed countries. The proportion of people actually receiving care was substantially less, 22.4%. Based on these estimates and on the current world population, 72.4 million women are currently infertile; of these, 40.5 million are currently seeking infertility medical care.
CONCLUSIONS The current evidence indicates a 9% prevalence of infertility (of 12 months) with 56% of couples seeking medical care. These estimates are lower than those typically cited and are remarkably similar between more and less developed countries.
1,680 citations
Book•
13 May 2005
TL;DR: In this article, Charis Thompson explores the intertwining of biological reproduction with the personal, political, and technological meanings of reproduction, and analyzes the "ontological choreography" at ART clinics using ethnographic data to address questions usually treated in the abstract.
Abstract: Assisted reproductive technology (ART) makes babies and parents at once. Drawing on science and technology studies, feminist theory, and historical and ethnographic analyses of ART clinics, Charis Thompson explores the intertwining of biological reproduction with the personal, political, and technological meanings of reproduction. She analyzes the "ontological choreography" at ART clinics -- the dynamics by which technical, scientific, kinship, gender, emotional, legal, political, financial, and other matters are coordinated -- using ethnographic data to address questions usually treated in the abstract. Reproductive technologies, says Thompson, are part of the increasing tendency to turn social problems into biomedical questions and can be used as a lens through which to see the resulting changes in the relations between science and society. After giving an account of the book's disciplinary roots in science and technology studies and in feminist scholarship on reproduction, Thompson comes to the ethnographic heart of her study. She develops her concept of ontological choreography by examining ART's normalization of "miraculous" technology (including the etiquette of technological sex); gender identity in the assigned roles of mother and father and the conservative nature of gender relations in the clinic; the naturalization of technologically assisted kinship and procreative intent; and patients' pursuit of agency through objectification and technology. Finally, Thompson explores the economies of reproductive technologies, concluding with a speculative and polemical look at the "biomedical mode of reproduction" as a predictor of future relations between science and society.
862 citations
"The experience of infertility: A re..." refers background in this paper
...van Balen, F. (2002) The psychologization of infertility....
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...Thompson (2005) has recently described the complex ontological choreography involving precisely timed actions (for example, injections of hormones, ejaculation of sperm and cryopreservation of gametes) among an interrelated set of actors (for example, physicians, nurses and patients) to produce a…...
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TL;DR: This essay reviews the literature on the social psychological impact of infertility, paying special attention to the relationship between gender and the infertility experience, and concludes that infertility is a more stressful experience for women than it is for men.
792 citations
"The experience of infertility: A re..." refers background in this paper
...The focus on people receiving treatment makes it difficult to generalize to those who do not seek treatment (Greil 1997)....
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...About 10 years ago Greil (1997) published a review and critique of the literature on the socio-psychological impact of infertility....
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...They may, however, be responding to past arguments rather than to contemporary accounts in that most of the descriptive literature – as well as most reports based on clinical impressions — asserts not that infertile patients are fundamentally different from others in their psychological functioning but that the experience of infertility is a source of psychological distress (Greil 1997)....
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...Methodological Issues Many methodological shortcomings in infertility research noted by Greil (1997) still persist....
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...While infertility may lead to stress and communication problems between marital partners, Greil (1991a, 1997) claims that couples nonetheless report that they feel that infertility has brought them closer together....
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TL;DR: In an unusually broad spectrum of essays, a distinguished group of international feminist scholars and activists explores the complexity of contemporary sexual politics around the globe using reproduction as an entry point in the study of social life and placing it at the center of social theory.
Abstract: This groundbreaking volume provides a dramatic investigation of the dynamics of reproduction In an unusually broad spectrum of essays, a distinguished group of international feminist scholars and activists explores the complexity of contemporary sexual politics around the globe Using reproduction as an entry point in the study of social life and placing it at the center of social theory, the authors examine how cultures are produced, contested, and transformed as people imagine their collective future in the creation of the next generation The studies encompass a wide variety of subjects, from the impact of AIDS on reproduction in the United States to the aftereffects of Chernobyl on the Sami people in Norway and the impact of totalitarian abortion and birth control policies in Romania and China The contributors use historical and comparative perspectives to illuminate the multiple and intersecting forms of power and resistance through which reproduction is given cultural weight and social form They discuss the ways that seemingly distant influences shape and constrain local reproductive experiences such as the international flows of adoptive babies and childcare workers and the Victorian and imperial legacy of eugenics and family planning
658 citations