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Chapter 41 - Infertility

from Section 2C - Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare: Infertility

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 January 2024

By
Ioannis E. Messinis ,
Christina I. Messini ,
George Anifandis  and
Alexandros Daponte
Edited by
Johannes Bitzer  and
Tahir A. Mahmood
Johannes Bitzer
Affiliation:
University Women's Hospital, Basel
Tahir A. Mahmood
Affiliation:
Victoria Hospital, Kirkcaldy
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Summary

Infertility is defined as the inability of a couple to conceive after at least 1 year of regular unprotected sexual intercourse. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), infertility is a disease of the reproductive system [1]. In the literature other terms such as subfertility or sterility have been used at times. The latter, however, is no longer used as it implies almost permanent inability of conception, whereas today there are opportunities for treatment in almost all cases of infertility. Infertility is defined as primary when the woman has never been pregnant before and secondary, when the woman has had at least one clinical pregnancy regardless of whether it was full-term.

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Information
Textbook of Contraception, Sexual and Reproductive Health , pp. 249 - 255
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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