1 in 6 people in the world affected by infertility: WHO

A large number of people suffer from infertility throughout their lives, according to a new report published by the WHO today. Approximately 17.5% of the adult population – approximately 1 in 6 worldwide – has infertility, demonstrating the urgent need to increase access to affordable, high-quality infertility care for those who need it.

New estimates show limited variation in infertility prevalence between regions. Rates are comparable for high-, middle-, and low-income countries, indicating that this is a major health challenge globally. Lifetime prevalence was 17.8% in high-income countries and 16.5% in low- and middle-income countries.

“The report reveals an important truth: infertility does not discriminate,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “The sheer proportion of people affected demonstrates the need to expand access to fertility care and ensure that this issue is no longer sidelined in health research and policy, so that safe, effective and affordable ways to achieve parenthood are available to those who seek it. ”

Infertility is a disease of the male or female reproductive system, defined by the inability to achieve pregnancy after 12 or more months of regular unprotected intercourse. It can cause significant distress, stigma and financial hardship, affecting people’s mental and psychosocial well-being.

Despite the magnitude of the problem, solutions for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of infertility – including assisted reproductive technology such as in vitro insemination (IVF) – remain underfunded and inaccessible to many due to high costs, social stigma and limited availability.

Currently, in most countries, infertility treatment is largely financed out of pocket – often resulting in devastating financial costs. People in the poorest countries spend a higher proportion of their income on fertility care than people in richer countries. High costs often prevent people from accessing fertility treatment or, alternatively, can push them into poverty as a result of seeking care.

“Millions of people face catastrophic health care costs after seeking infertility treatment, making this a major equity issue and too often a medical poverty trap for those affected,” said Dr. Pascale Allotey, director of sexual and reproductive health and research at WHO, including the United Nations Special Program for Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP). “Better policies and public funding can significantly improve access to treatment and protect poorer households from falling into poverty as a result.”

While the new report shows compelling evidence of a high global prevalence of infertility, it highlights the persistent lack of data in many countries and some regions. It calls for greater availability of national data on infertility disaggregated by age and cause to help quantify infertility, as well as find out who needs infertility care and how risks can be reduced.

Notes to editors

About the report

This report provides insight into the global and regional prevalence of infertility by analyzing all relevant studies from 1990 to 2021, taking into account the different estimation approaches used.

The search identified 12,241 records of potentially relevant studies worldwide. Screening of these records led to the selection of 133 studies that were included in the analysis for the report. From these, relevant data points were used to generate pooled estimates for lifetime and period infertility prevalence.

New research on infertility treatment costs

Separately, new research funded by HRP and WHO and published in the journal Human reproduction Open estimated costs associated with infertility treatment in low- and middle-income countries. This analysis found that the direct medical costs paid by patients for a single round of in vitro fertilization (IVF) are often higher than average annual income – indicating cost prohibitive for most people in these parts of the world.

This research can be accessed at: https://academic.oup.com/hropen/article/2023/2/hoad007/7066921