Aspects of psychosocial development in infertile versus fertile men

Infertility is one of the most difficult life experiences that a couple might encounter. Infertility as a bio-psycho-social phenomenon, could influence all aspects of life. While paying special attention to the psychological aspects of infertility in couples; many studies have investigated the non-clinical aspects of infertility, however, they rarely have evaluated the psychosocial development of infertile versus fertile men. We aimed to study the effects of infertility on psychosocial development in men. In fact, we designed the study based on "Erikson's theory of psychosocial development". We focused on the relationship between psychosocial development and some self-conceived indices. For this purpose, we divided the participants volunteers into two groups of cases [80 infertile men] and controls [40 fertile men] and asked them to complete a 112 [questions questionnaire based on "self description"]. The statistical analysis was performed by SPSS [version 13] using independent t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient and analysis of covariance. A p-value <0.05 was considered significant. Data analysis showed significant inter and intra group differences. Infertile and fertile groups showed significant differences in trust, autonomy, generativity and integrity stages [p<0.05]. Infertile intergroup analysis represents us to higher scores in positive than negative stages. Infertility as a phenomenon had its own effects on the psychosocial development of infertile men. However, good coping skills are powerful tools to manage these myriad of feelings surrounding infertile men

Specialists' attitude toward appropriate number of transferable embryos in assisted reproductive technology in Iran

In recent years, the high likelihood of the implantation of transferred embryos has led to an increase in the number of multiple pregnancies and consequently an increased risk of complications in fetuses and mothers. Since the aim of infertility treatment is the birth of a healthy child while preserving the mother's health, therefore, attempts should be made to avoid multiple pregnancies as much as possible besides maintaining the women's chance of pregnancy by transferring an appropriate number of embryos. The population under study consisted of specialists [gynecologists and embryologists] who worked in ART clinics across the country and had attended an infertility congress in Tehran in 2008. The devised questionnaire enquired about the infertility specialists' attitude towards the appropriate number of transferable embryos. The questions were designed on a Likert scale of strongly agree, agree, indifferent, disagree and strongly disagree. The scores of the questionnaire ranged from 0-60 which were later scaled up to 100 for ease of data analysis. Accordingly, scores below 50 were considered as "negative", 50-75 "moderate" and greater than 75 as "positive". Overall, 9.9% of the specialists gained a score less than 50 [negative view], 67.3% between 50-75 [moderate] and 22.8% greater than 75 [positive view]. The infertility specialists in Iran are relatively reluctant to transfer a high number of embryos for infertility treatments

Study of body image in fertile and infertile men

Body Image as a multidimensional entity is related to both physical and psychological aspects of the image one has of his or her own body. Lack/absence of an acceptable body image is one of the reasons of mental distress in infertile individuals. In this study, an equal number [No=120] of fertile and infertile men attending Avicenna Infertility Clinic [AIC] were enrolled. The participants were compared in regard to body image variables based on the "Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire [MBSRQ]" consisting of 10 subscales. Data was analyzed by SPSS, version 11.5, using Chi square and independent t-tests. Fertile men had a more positive body image as compared to infertile individuals. Significant statistical differences were observed when body image subscales were compared in both groups; in other words appearance evaluation, appearance orientation, Novy, health evaluation, health orientation, illness orientation, body satisfaction, overweight preoccupation and self-classified weight showed differences, while no significant difference was observed in regard to fitness orientation. It seems that the ability and efficiency of body image is affected by infertility leading to dissatisfaction of one's body image

Association of vascular endothelial growth factor [VEGF] +405 G>C polymorphism with endometriosis in an Iranian population

Angiogenesis, growth of new blood vessels from pre-existing vessels, is a crucial physiological process for tissue regeneration. This state is also seen in pathological processes such as malignancies and endometriosis. Vascular endothelial growth factor [VEGF] is a major mediator of angiogenesis and vascular permeability which is known to play an important role in the development of endometriosis. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between +405 G>C VEGF polymorphism and endometriosis in an Iranian population. The study population was comprised of 105 women with and 150 women without laparoscopic evidence of endometriosis. Genomic DNA from blood cells was extracted using salting out method. Genotype and allele frequency of +405 G>C polymorphism was compared between women with endometriosis and the controls using PCR-RFLP. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 13.0 software. Chi-squared test and odds ratio plus 95% confidence interval were determined. A p-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. While the +405 VEGF genotype frequencies in the case group were 41.3% G/G, 46.2% C/G and%12.5 C/C, they were 32% GG,%53.3 GC and 14.7% CC in the control group. The distribution of three genotypes and allele frequencies of+405 G>C VEGF polymorphism between the case and control groups did not demonstrate any significant difference. In contrast to previous studies, no significant correlation was found between +405 G>C VEGF polymorphism and endometriosis. Since this was the first study in an Iranian population, further investigation with bigger sample sizes may be indicated to be able to generalize the findings

[Mental health status of patients attending Avicenna infertility clinic]

Infertility bears a painful psychological distress and affected couples' reaction to it is commonly seen in the form of anxiety, depression, somatization or social dysfunction. The goal of this study was to evaluate the mental health status of the infertile couples referred the Avicenna Infertility Clinic by the General Health Questionnaire-28 [GHQ-28]. In this qualitative study, 400 couples were randomly selected among couples referred to Avicenna Infertility Clinic for infertility work-up and treatment. After signing an informed consent form, each individual filled a questionnaire on demographic characteristics and one for mental health status assessment, the GHQ- 28. The mean age of the couples [21 to 63 years] was 34 +/- 6 years. The preliminary diagnosis of infertility related to gender included 21.9% female, 65.5% male, 7.1% both and 5.4% unexplained causes of infertility. By regarding a cutoff point of 24 for the GHQ-24 questionnaire, 4% of the individuals showed an abnormal score. The abnormal scores were in domains of social dysfunction [43.5%], anxiety [10.9%], somatization [9.5%] and depression [3.3%] Significant statistical difference were seen between male and female participants in total GHQ-28 scores, as well as somatization and depression, [p < 0.05], where the female participants showed worse psychological health states [p < 0.05]. About 4% of the infertile patients attending Avicenna Infertility Clinic seem to be at risk of psychological disorders and provision of psychological health care alongside the medical treatment is advisable