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. 2023 Nov 13;12(22):7069.
doi: 10.3390/jcm12227069.

Emotional Distress Caused by the Measures Taken in Assisted Reproductive Treatments during the COVID-19 Confinement in Spain

Marta Correa Rancel  1   2 , Elena Sosa Comino  1 , Fatima Leon-Larios  3 , Yaiza Suárez Hernández  1 , Janet Carballo Lorenzo  1 , Diego Gomez-Baya  4 , Delia Baez Quintana  1   2
Affiliations

Emotional Distress Caused by the Measures Taken in Assisted Reproductive Treatments during the COVID-19 Confinement in Spain

Marta Correa Rancel et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

During the pandemic, assisted reproductive treatments suffered from major disruptions in their terms due to the restrictions imposed. The objective of this study is to evaluate the level of anxiety of women whose treatments were either suspended or delayed.

Methods: Descriptive cross-sectional study conducted between April and May 2020. The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory was applied by telephone in a Spanish adapted version. The research also included social, personal, and work aspects which may be involved in the challenging situation.

Results: A total of 115 patients participated in the study (73.7%). Women showed a mean in trait anxiety of 17.79 (SD = 8.80) and a mean in state anxiety of 19.95 (SD = 9.08). Neither the type of treatment nor the time of infertility were predictors of trait anxiety or state anxiety. Greater age pressure and more worry were associated to greater trait and state anxiety (p < 0.001). The most common emotional reactions to discontinuation of fertility treatments were sadness and anxiety.

Conclusions: Discontinuation of fertility treatments due to confinement restrictions had a negative impact on the mental health of women who were following a process of assisted reproduction treatment, increasing their levels of emotional distress and anxiety.

Keywords: COVID-19; anxiety; confinement; fertility; infertility; lockdown.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Differences in age pressure by the type of treatment.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Differences in age pressure and trait anxiety by the type of treatment.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Means in trait and state anxiety by the levels in age pressure.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Means in trait and state anxiety by the levels in worry about living a pregnancy during this pandemic.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Means in trait anxiety by the type of treatment and the level of age pressure.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Means in state anxiety by the type of treatment and the level of age pressure.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Means in trait anxiety by the type of treatment and the level of worry about living a pregnancy during the pandemic.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Means in state anxiety by the type of treatment and the level of worry about living a pregnancy during the pandemic.
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