U.S. Infertility Rates Stable From 1995 to 2019

THURSDAY, June 23, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Rates of infertility among U.S. women have remained largely unchanged since 1995, according to a study published online June 13 in Fertility and Sterility.

Morgan Snow, from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, and colleagues used data from the National Survey for Family Growth (1995 to 2019) to estimate the changes in infertility from 1995 to 2019 and determine the association of individual-level characteristics with fertility in the United States.

The researchers found that fluctuations in infertility during the study period were not statistically significant (range: 5.8 percent in 2006 to 2010 to 8.1 percent in 2017 to 2019). Similar trends were seen across subgroups. Infertility was more common among women who were older and nulliparous, had fewer years of education, had lower income, were non-Hispanic Black, or were not receiving sexual and reproductive health services.

"This is a unique time period where sexually transmitted infections are on the rise and there are a number of emerging threats to health care access," a coauthor said in a statement. "For care providers who are working with women, it's important to understand how these factors might be influencing fertility."

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