Psychosocial support for infertile couples during assisted reproductive technology treatment

Agostini, Francesca; Monti, Fiorella; Pascalis, Leonardo De; Paterlini, Marcella; Sala, Giovanni Battista La; Blickstein, Isaac

doi:10.1016/j.fertnstert.2010.06.011

Cited by 36 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 15 publications

(18 reference statements)

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“…A Swedish study 28 found that for men, common sources of support included friends (38%) and their own mothers (27%) and fathers (23%), but a large proportion (47.3%) had not confided in anyone other than their spouse. In Italy, Agostini et al 73 conducted a cohort study of 83/161 (51%) couples from treatment initiation to 1 month after embryo transfer and investigated perceived social support using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. 74 At all time points studied, men were found to have less social support and to be less likely to discuss infertility and treatment with others than women.…”

Section: Male Experiences Of Infertility Treatmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological and social aspects of infertility in men: an overview of the evidence and implications for psychologically informed clinical care and future research

Fisher¹,

Hammarberg²

2011

Asian J Androl

197

162

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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.

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Section: Male Experiences Of Infertility Treatmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological and social aspects of infertility in men: an overview of the evidence and implications for psychologically informed clinical care and future research

Fisher¹,

Hammarberg²

2011

Asian J Androl

197

162

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Infertility diagnosis and the treatment failures are sudden, unexpected, and frightening crisis that can affect the adaptation process of couples. In addition, mental pressure, loneliness, disappointment, and loss of control are highly observed in people referring for assisted reproductive methods (11,12). Studies have shown that such factors as age at the time of infertility diagnosis, infertility duration, marriage duration, cause of infertility, treatment failure, frequent pregnancy tests, and more importantly social stigma lead to the creation of infertilityrelated stress in couples (7,11,(13)(14)(15).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of the Infertility-Related Stress Among Couples and its Relationship With Infertility Factors

Hashemieh

Ozgoliid

Abolmaali

et al. 2018

International Journal of Women’s Health and Reproduction Scienc

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Objectives: Inability to have a child is stressful and affects all aspects of couples’ lives. Infertility diagnosis, duration and reason of infertility, treatment failure, and frequent pregnancy tests are among the stress-inducing factors in couples. The current study aimed to compare infertility-related stress among couples and evaluate its relationships with infertility factors. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 150 infertile couples (300 individuals) visiting infertility centers of Tehran. The data were collected using the Fertility Problem Inventory (FPI) and fertility and demographic characteristics form. The subjects were selected through convenience sampling method. The data were analyzed through inferential statistics, including paired samples t-test, independent samples t test, ANOVA, and linear regression. Results: According to the results, the mean stress score of women was significantly higher than that of the men (P=0.007). There was a significant difference between males and females regarding the mean scores of social concern and need for parenthood (P=0.005). The mean score of infertility-related stress was also significantly higher in women with treatment failure than in men (P=0.01). Conclusions: Based on the findings of the present study, infertile women experienced greater stress than males. Furthermore, infertility-related stress increased in women due to treatment failure. Therefore, it is recommended that women who have experienced treatment failure be subjected to precise psychological evaluations before undergoing the treatment process.

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“…The negative consequences found in many studies and reviews included increased levels of stress, confusion and anxiety [5] [6] [7], decreased satisfaction with the couples' relationship and sexuality [8] [9], decreased satisfaction with social life and, in unsuccessful treatments, hampered grieving [10] [11] and lasting sadness [12]. These negative consequences are found in both men and women, and while some authors suggest these consequences may be somewhat stronger in women [8] [13] [14], others did not [12] [15].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perception of the Psychosocial Aspects of Subfertility by Parents Following Successful Medically Assisted Conception: A Qualitative Study

Warmelink¹,

Meijer²,

Mulder³

et al. 2016

OJOG

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Nearly 5% of new-borns in the Netherlands are now born following Medically Assisted Conception (MAC), a steadily increasing number. Our qualitative study explored the subjective impact of subfertility and fertility treatment for parents who successfully achieve pregnancy following MAC and make health professionals more aware of the psychological needs of those clients. The study was based on the constructive/interpretative paradigm using a constant comparison/grounded theory design. Two men and nine women in the Netherlands who conceived as a result of MAC were interviewed in 2011. Our findings show that MAC-parents were exposed to a range of emotions such as disappointment, hope and uncertainty during the subfertile period, and these feelings were even felt after successful fertility treatment. The relationship and social support from friends and others in the same position were very important. Regarding the relationship with the partner during the subfertile period, the main thing the couple have to do is to keep talking with one another. Although they did not always agree on all issues, it was found that maintaining the communication strengthened the links between them by the end of the process. We concluded that the feelings and emotions during fertility treatment play a big role during the subfertile period and remain important during pregnancy and even after childbirth. Subfertile clients want maternity care providers to ask those who successfully achieve pregnancy following MAC about their experiences during fertility treatment, check that they still are receiving adequate social support, and involve the partner in prenatal checks.

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Psychosocial support for infertile couples during assisted reproductive technology treatment

Cited by 36 publications

References 15 publications

Psychological and social aspects of infertility in men: an overview of the evidence and implications for psychologically informed clinical care and future research

Psychological and social aspects of infertility in men: an overview of the evidence and implications for psychologically informed clinical care and future research

Comparison of the Infertility-Related Stress Among Couples and its Relationship With Infertility Factors

Perception of the Psychosocial Aspects of Subfertility by Parents Following Successful Medically Assisted Conception: A Qualitative Study

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