Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Mar 19;18(6):3202.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18063202.

Associations between Disability and Infertility among U.S. Reproductive-Aged Women

Sandie Ha  1 , Valerie Martinez  1
Affiliations

Associations between Disability and Infertility among U.S. Reproductive-Aged Women

Sandie Ha et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

We aim to evaluate the association between self-reported disabilities and infertility and whether disabilities are associated with decreased likelihood of seeking infertility-related care. This US nationally representative cross-sectional analysis includes 3789 non-pregnant women aged 18-49 years without history of hysterectomy or oophorectomy (NHANES, 2013-2018). Disabilities and infertility were both self-reported in personal interviews with trained interviewers. Logistic regression models estimated the adjusted odds ratio (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals for the association between disabilities and infertility and related care seeking. Models adjusted for potential confounders and complex probability sampling. Compared to women without disabilities, women with disabilities (WWD) had higher odds of infertility (aOR: 1.78 (1.31-2.40)). Similar findings were observed for sensory (2.32 (1.52-3.52)) and cognitive disabilities (1.77 (1.28-2.44)). Among women with infertility, WWD were less likely to seek infertility-related care (0.68 (0.32-1.44)) but these estimates were not statistically significant. WWD have increased odds of reporting infertility, and if affected, are less likely to visit a health care provider for this condition. While more research is needed to understand reproductive health issues and needs among WWD, it is important to push for more equitable policies and practices to address the health needs of this underserved population.

Keywords: disability; infertility; reproductive health; women’s health.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Associations between disability and self-report infertility, NHANES 2013–2018. a DAG-based model adjusted for age, race, and education. The Y-axis is displayed on the logarithmic scale.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Associations between disability and infertility-related doctor visit among those reported infertility. a DAG-based model adjusted for age, race, and education. The Y-axis is displayed on the logarithmic scale.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. CDC Disability Impacts All of Us. [(accessed on 14 May 2020)]; Available online: https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/disabilityandhealth/infographic-disability-im....
    1. Horner-Johnson W., Darney B.G., Kulkarni-Rajasekhara S., Quigley B., Caughey A.B. Pregnancy among US women: Differences by presence, type, and complexity of disability. Am. J. Obstet. Gynecol. 2016;214:529.e1–529.e9. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2015.10.929. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Prevalence and most common causes of disability among adults—United States, 2005. MMWR Morb. Mortal. Wkly. Rep. 2009;58:421–426. - PubMed
    1. Akasreku B.D., Habib H., Ankomah A. Pregnancy in Disability: Community Perceptions and Personal Experiences in a Rural Setting in Ghana. J. Pregnancy. 2018;2018:8096839. doi: 10.1155/2018/8096839. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Earle S., Church S. Disability and reproduction. Pract. Midwife. 2004;7:32–34. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources