Mental health of infertile women: a systematic review

INTRODUCTION: Millions of people and couples worldwide are impacted by the complexand emotionally taxing medical issue of infertility. Infertility describes aperson's or a couple's inability to conceive a child or carry a pregnancy,leading to profound emotional, psychological, and social effects on them. Theresearch into the mental health of infertile women is crucial in the managementof outcomes of infertility. AIM: Against this background, this study aims to discover mental health challengesthat impact fertility in women and further help in the field to improve theoverall outlook on the condition. METHODS: In adherence with Prisma Guidelines, a systematic search was carried out of theliterature published from 1 January 2010, to 3 March 2023, in PubMed, Cochrane,Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Open Alex. All the synonyms of keywords orMeSH terms for mental health, infertile women, infertile females, andinfertility were used. 1234 articles related to mental health and infertilityin women were found, and after following the inclusion and exclusion criteria,47 studies were retained. RESULTS: Infertile women experience mental health threats like anxiety, depression,stress, marital dissatisfaction, and lower quality of life. In addition to thepsychological and emotional burden of infertility, they often struggle with alack of social support and different types of abuse and violence in theirrelationships. CONCLUSION: With support from loved ones, support groups, and healthcare experts, timely, evidence-based, low-cost infertility interventions can provide great assistanceand successfully navigate the emotional difficulties experienced by infertilewomen.