Abstract
Objective To examine the characteristics of women in the 1988 National Survey of Family Growth who reported having obtained medical services for impaired fecundity.
Methods From a national sample of 8450 women between the ages of 15-44, drawn from the civilian, noninstitutionalized population of the entire United States in 1988, we estimated the use of infertility services in the United States. Multivariate statistical modeling was used to identify the characteristics associated with use of infertility services among the 770 women who reported impaired fecundity in this survey.
Results Of all women with impaired fecundity, 43% had obtained some form of infertility service and 24% had obtained specialized infertility treatment--ovulation drugs, treatment of fallopian tubes, artificial insemination, or in vitro fertilization. Older, white, married women of higher socioeconomic status were most likely to have obtained specialized services, and a history of endometriosis was also strongly associated with having received such services.
Conclusion Most women with impaired fecundity had not obtained infertility services. Use of specialized services was strongly associated with certain sociodemographic variables or a history of endometriosis.
infertility services utilization united states, access to fertility treatment barriers, socioeconomic disparities infertility care, who seeks infertility treatment demographics, endometriosis infertility service use, impaired fecundity medical services, national survey fertility treatment access, specialized infertility services uptake, racial disparities fertility care, insurance coverage infertility treatment, married versus unmarried infertility services, age factors fertility treatment seeking
Keywords
Adolescent, Adult, Female, Health Services/statistics & Numerical Data, Humans, Infertility, Female/therapy, Socioeconomic Factors, United States,