What is the quality of information on social oocyte cryopreservation provided by websites of Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology member fertility clinics?

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate adequacy and adherence to American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) guidelines of internet information provided by Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART)-affiliated clinics regarding social oocyte cryopreservation (SOC).

Design: Systematic evaluation of websites of all SART member fertility clinics.

Setting: The internet.

Patient(s): None.

Intervention(s): All websites offering SOC services were scored using a 0-13 scale, based on 10 questions designed to assess website quality and adherence to the ASRM/SART guidelines. The websites were analyzed independently by two authors. Whenever disagreement occurred, a third investigator determined the score.

Main outcome measure(s): Scores defined website quality as excellent, ≥9; moderate, 5-8; or poor, ≤4 points.

Result(s): Of the 387 clinics registered as SART members, 200 offered oocyte cryopreservation services for either medical or social reasons; 147 of these advertised SOC. The average website scores of those clinics offering SOC was 3.4 ± 2.1 (range, 2-11) points. There was no significant difference in scores between private versus academic clinics or clinics performing more or less than 500 cycles per year.

Conclusion(s): The majority of the websites do not follow the SART/ASRM guidelines for SOC, indicating that there is a need to improve the type and quality of information provided on SOC by SART member websites.

Keywords: Nonmedical oocyte cryopreservation; internet; websites.