Globally, infertility affects one in six people- WHO

A reproductive disorder known as infertility, which affects both men and women, is characterised by the inability to conceive after 12 months or more of frequent, unprotected sexual activity.

One in six individuals globally suffer from infertility, and there is a lack of accessible care for this condition, according to a report released on Tuesday by the World Health Organization (WHO).

A reproductive disorder known as infertility, which affects both men and women, is characterised by the inability to conceive after 12 months or more of frequent, unprotected sexual activity.

According to research authored by Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organisation, it was determined that 17.5% of the adult population will experience infertility in their lifetime after analysing all pertinent studies on the subject from 1990 to 2021.

For high-, middle-, and low-income nations, the rates are “similar,” according to Ghebreyesus.

Infertility does not discriminate, as the paper makes clear.

“The overwhelming number of impacted individuals demonstrates the need to increase access to fertility treatment and ensure that this problem is no longer ignored in health research and policy so that safe, efficient, and inexpensive means to achieve motherhood are available.”

A further finding was that, despite the prevalence of infertility, diagnosis and treatment—including in vitro fertilisation (IVF)—remain underfunded, leaving many people with little alternative but to pay for them out of pocket, sometimes with disastrous results.

In addition, WHO noted a “chronic” shortage of information on infertility in several nations.

It asked for improved national infertility statistics that may be “disaggregated by age and by cause” in order to focus treatments and encourage prevention in order to battle this.