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Presentations 2008
Herbert D. Prior pregnancy outcomes and seeking treatment for fertility problems In Australian women aged 28-33 years. Brisbane, Queensland, 20-22 October 2008 Aim: Women who are unable to conceive after one year are considered to have primary or secondary infertility depending on their history of prior pregnancies. This study aims to identify the associations between prior pregnancy outcomes and seeking treatment for self-reported fertility problems in the general population.
Method: Participants in the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health were aged 28-33 years (n=9145) in 2006 and completed up to four mailed surveys over ten years including questions on fertility problems and treatments. Participants were categorised into mutually exclusive pregnancy outcome groups including combinations of: birth, miscarriage/stillbirth, and termination/ectopic or no pregnancy.
Results: More than two in five (n=3736, 43%) women had not had a pregnancy. For women who reported pregnancy outcomes (n=5409), the most common outcomes were birth only (48%) and birth/miscarriage (16%). Two thirds (n=1010, 69%) of women who reported fertility problems sought treatment. Of women who reported fertility problems, those who had a history of miscarriages only were more likely to seek treatment (OR 2.1, 95%CI 1.1-3.8) than women who had births only (OR 1.7, 95%CI 1.2-2.5) compared with women who had never been pregnant. Women with fertility problems who had a history of both birth and miscarriage were as likely (OR 1.1, 95%CI 0.7-1.7) to seek treatment as women who had never been pregnant.
Conclusion: Women who have a history of miscarriage and are confronted with fertility problems are more likely to seek treatment if they have never had a live birth.
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