Stress and Anxiety Scores in First and Repeat IVF Cycles: A Pilot Study

The role of stress in reproduction, particularly during treatment for infertility, has been of considerable interest; however, few studies have objectively measured stress and anxiety over the course of the IVF cycle or compared the experience of first-time and repeat patients. This prospective coho...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one Vol. 8; no. 5; p. e63743
Main Authors: Turner, Kathy, Reynolds-May, Margaret F., Zitek, Emily M., Tisdale, Rebecca L., Carlisle, Allison B., Westphal, Lynn M.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States Public Library of Science 23.05.2013
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Subjects:
Acupuncture
Adult
Anxiety
Anxiety - epidemiology
Anxiety - etiology
Care and treatment
Clinical trials
Comparative analysis
Embryo transfer
Embryos
Female
Fertilization in vitro
Fertilization in Vitro - psychology
Gynecology
Humans
In vitro fertilization
Infertility
Infertility, Female - therapy
Medicine
Obstetrics
Oocyte Retrieval
Patients
Pilot Projects
Pregnancy
Pregnancy Rate
Prospective Studies
Questionnaires
Reproductive technologies
Retrieval
Social and Behavioral Sciences
Stress
Stress (Psychology)
Stress, Psychological - epidemiology
Stress, Psychological - etiology
Stresses
Studies
Surveys and Questionnaires
Treatment Outcome
Womens health
United States > US
California
ISSN:1932-6203, 1932-6203
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The role of stress in reproduction, particularly during treatment for infertility, has been of considerable interest; however, few studies have objectively measured stress and anxiety over the course of the IVF cycle or compared the experience of first-time and repeat patients. This prospective cohort pilot study enrolled 44 women undergoing IVF at a university-based clinic to complete the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Infertility Self-Efficacy Scale (ISES) at three time points prior to ovarian stimulation (T1), one day prior to oocyte retrieval (T2), and 5-7 days post embryo transfer (T3). Mean STAI State scores were significantly elevated at all three time points (p<0.01). STAI State and PSS mean values did not change over time and did not differ in first-time vs. repeat patients. Self-efficacy (ISES) scores declined over time, with a greater decline for repeat patients. Of the 36 women who completed a cycle, 15 achieved clinical pregnancy. Using logistic regression modeling, all scores at T2 were correlated with pregnancy outcome with lower scores on the STAI State and PSS and higher scores on the ISES associated with higher pregnancy rates. Stress and anxiety levels remained elevated across all cycles. Women with lower stress and anxiety levels on the day prior to oocyte retrieval had a higher pregnancy rate. These results emphasize the need to investigate stress reduction modalities throughout the IVF cycle.
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Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Conceived and designed the experiments: KT MFR-M LMW. Performed the experiments: KT MFR-M RLT ABC. Analyzed the data: KT MFR-M EMZ RLT ABC LMW. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: KT MFR-M EMZ RLT ABC LMW. Wrote the paper: KT MFR-M LMW.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0063743