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Socioeconomic and Racial/Ethnic Inequalities in Infertility Prevalence, Help-Seeking, and Help Received Since 1995
Katherine I Tierney1, Arthur L Greil2, Ann V Bell3
1Department of Sociology, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Summary
Racial/ethnic and socioeconomic inequalities in infertility prevalence and treatment seeking persist over time. Despite advances, these disparities in accessing care and specific infertility treatments have not significantly narrowed.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive Health
- Health Disparities
- Public Health
Background:
- Significant racial/ethnic and socioeconomic inequalities exist in infertility prevalence and treatment in the U.S.
- Biomedical advancements and public health focus on infertility have increased.
- Temporal trends of these inequalities remain largely unexamined.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate changes in racial/ethnic and socioeconomic inequalities related to infertility over time.
- To analyze trends in infertility prevalence, help-seeking behaviors, and medical treatment utilization.
- To assess the impact of time on disparities in infertility care.
Main Methods:
- Utilized National Survey of Family Growth data from 1995 to 2017-2019.
- Employed multivariable logistic regression with interaction terms.
- Examined inequalities in infertility prevalence, help-seeking, and specific treatments (medication, surgery, insemination).
Main Results:
- Inequalities in overall infertility prevalence and help-seeking remained persistent.
- Racial/ethnic disparities persisted in medical testing, ovulation medication, and tubal surgery.
- Socioeconomic inequalities widened for medical testing but narrowed for ovulation medication use.
Conclusions:
- Little evidence suggests that interventions, advances, or awareness campaigns have reduced infertility-related inequalities.
- Persistent disparities highlight the need for targeted policies to address inequities in reproductive healthcare.
- Future research should focus on effective strategies to mitigate these ongoing disparities.
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