The World Health Organization (WHO), a UN agency based in Geneva, has cautioned in a significant new report that access to affordable care is insufficient and that one in six individuals worldwide are affected by infertility.
Both men and women can have infertility, which is a reproductive condition characterised by the inability to conceive after 12 months or more of frequent, unprotected sexual activity.
The WHO examined all pertinent infertility research published between 1990 and 2021 in order to establish the updated detailed estimations. According to the report, 17.5% of adults will encounter infertility at some point in their lives.
According to the UN office for health, the rates in high-, middle-, and low-income nations are “similar.”
“The report reveals an important truth: infertility does not discriminate,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, said in a statement.
“The sheer proportion of people affected shows the need to widen access to fertility care and ensure this issue is no longer sidelined in health research and policy so that safe, effective and affordable ways to attain parenthood are available.”
WHO said that despite the prevalence of infertility, diagnosis and treatment — such as in vitro fertilisation (IVF) — remain underfunded and patients find themselves priced out.
Many are forced to pay the expenses out of pocket, which frequently has disastrous results.
According to Dr. Pascale Allotey, WHO’s Head of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research, millions of people who sought treatment for infertility were all too frequently caught in a “medical poverty trap” and faced catastrophic healthcare expenses.
WHO states that compared to persons in affluent nations, those in the poorest countries spend a larger percentage of their income on fertility care.
The UN agency for health also cites newly released, separate studies on infertility expenses in low- and middle-income countries that it co-funded.
According to the findings, one IVF round might cost as much as the average annual salary.
Improved regulations and public funding can dramatically increase access to care and safeguard the less fortunate.
The WHO emphasised that infertility was associated with “distress and stigma” in addition to a higher risk of intimate partner violence.
Dr. Allottey argued that infertility should be a top priority for universal health coverage due to the numerous detrimental effects the disorder has on people’s health all over the world.
The WHO research stated that treating infertility can help reduce gender disparity. “Fertility care is a vital aspect of sexual and reproductive health,” it added.
Not only are services insufficiently available, but so is adequate research.
WHO highlights a “persistent” lack of data related to infertility in many countries.
To remedy this, WHO has called for better national infertility statistics which be “disaggregated by age and by cause” in order to target interventions and support prevention.
