Skip Navigation

This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF ) Freely available
Right arrow Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (18)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Sanders, K.A.
Right arrow Articles by Bruce, N.W.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Sanders, K.A.
Right arrow Articles by Bruce, N.W.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Human Reproduction, Vol. 14, No. 6, 1656-1662, June 1999
© 1999 European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology

Psychosocial stress and treatment outcome following assisted reproductive technology

K.A. Sanders and N.W. Bruce1

Department of Anatomy and Human Biology, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, W.A. 6907, Australia

This study investigated the association between psychosocial stress and outcome of in-vitro fertilization and gamete intra-Fallopian transfer treatment. Ninety women, enrolled for treatment at a private infertility clinic, completed two self-administered psychometric tests (Bi-polar Profile of Mood States, POMS; and State–Trait Anxiety Inventory, STAI) and a questionnaire to ascertain demographic and lifestyle characteristics before the start of treatment. Approximately 12 months later an outcome measure was determined for each participant in terms of whether she was pregnant or not pregnant and the number of treatment cycles undertaken to achieve clinical pregnancy. The women's scores on the psychological tests were similar to published normative scores. On univariate analysis, history of a previous pregnancy was positively related to the probability of pregnancy and full-time employment, a more `hostile' mood state and higher trait anxiety were associated with a lower cumulative pregnancy rate. A Cox multiple regression model found previous pregnancy history, trait anxiety, and the POMS agreeable–hostile and elated–depressed scales to be the most important lifestyle and stress variables predictive of pregnancy. The results emphasize the importance of psychosocial stress in treatment outcome but indicate that the relationships are complex. Further studies are required to validate whether these findings can be generalized to other populations.

Key words: infertility/IVF/prospective study/psychosocial stress

1 To whom correspondence should be addressed


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Hum ReprodHome page
S.M.S. Ebbesen, R. Zachariae, M.Y. Mehlsen, D. Thomsen, A. Hojgaard, L. Ottosen, T. Petersen, and H.J. Ingerslev
Stressful life events are associated with a poor in-vitro fertilization (IVF) outcome: a prospective study
Hum. Reprod., September 1, 2009; 24(9): 2173 - 2182.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Hum ReprodHome page
D. M. Campagne
Should fertilization treatment start with reducing stress?
Hum. Reprod., July 1, 2006; 21(7): 1651 - 1658.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Hum Reprod UpdateHome page
H. Klonoff-Cohen
Female and male lifestyle habits and IVF: what is known and unknown
Hum. Reprod. Update, March 1, 2005; 11(2): 180 - 204.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.