Knowledge and beliefs about oocyte cryopreservation for medical and social reasons in female students: a cross-sectional survey
Abstract Background With the increasing number of young women surviving cancer and a growing trend among highly educated women to postpone childbearing for educational or professional pursuits, there is a rising demand for egg freezing services to ensure a successful pregnancy. This study aims to as...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2023-06-01
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| Series: | BMC Women's Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-023-02481-2 |
| _version_ | 1827916744056897536 |
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| author | Mohammad Mehdi Akhondi Zohreh Behjati Ardakani J. Catja Warmelink Shima Haghani Fahimeh Ranjbar |
| author_facet | Mohammad Mehdi Akhondi Zohreh Behjati Ardakani J. Catja Warmelink Shima Haghani Fahimeh Ranjbar |
| author_sort | Mohammad Mehdi Akhondi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background With the increasing number of young women surviving cancer and a growing trend among highly educated women to postpone childbearing for educational or professional pursuits, there is a rising demand for egg freezing services to ensure a successful pregnancy. This study aims to assess the knowledge and beliefs surrounding oocyte cryopreservation, both for medical and social reasons, among female students in Tehran, Iran. Methods An online cross-sectional survey was carried out from March to August of 2022, involving a total of 1279 childless students pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees at universities in Tehran. The participants were between the ages of 18 and 38. Knowledge and beliefs about medical and social oocyte cryopreservation were assessed through Fertility Preservation Survey (FPS) instrument. Results The mean age of the participants was 26.38 ± 4.9. The majority of students expected to be “30–34 years” when they become pregnant with their first child (41.1%, M: 30.3 ± 4.13 years) and “35–39 years” when they give birth to their last child (46.7%, M: 35.28 ± 4.18 years). The students agreed with preserving fertility with medical (93.3%) and social (86.9%) indications and believed the medical (95.1%) and social (87.4%) costs of cryopreservation should be covered by the healthcare system. Among the participants, 75.6% considered cost to be a definite or probable factor in their decision to pursue fertility preservation. The oncology team’s recommendation was identified as the most important factor in deciding on medical egg freezing (92.6%, M: 3.46 ± 0.71). The overall correct response rate for the knowledge questions was 57.7%. The majority of participants (95.5%) agreed that physicians should routinely provide information about egg freezing to women of childbearing age during their regular healthcare visits. Conclusions The research results revealed that female students in Tehran universities have a positive attitude towards medical and social egg freezing, but lack sufficient knowledge about the ideal timing of childbearing. Health professionals could provide detailed information about fertility preservation and age-related infertility as part of routine healthcare visits or reproductive health planning. Additionally, expanding supportive policies and incentives for childbearing established by the government to cover the costs of fertility preservation would be beneficial. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T03:19:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e179a90bc72244eb968dc9ecd7e4962d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1472-6874 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T03:19:37Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Women's Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-e179a90bc72244eb968dc9ecd7e4962d2023-06-25T11:26:40ZengBMCBMC Women's Health1472-68742023-06-0123111110.1186/s12905-023-02481-2Knowledge and beliefs about oocyte cryopreservation for medical and social reasons in female students: a cross-sectional surveyMohammad Mehdi Akhondi0Zohreh Behjati Ardakani1J. Catja Warmelink2Shima Haghani3Fahimeh Ranjbar4Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECRReproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECRUniversity of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Department of Primary and Long-term Care, University of GroningenNursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Health Management Research Institute, Iran University of Medical SciencesNursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Health Management Research Institute, Iran University of Medical SciencesAbstract Background With the increasing number of young women surviving cancer and a growing trend among highly educated women to postpone childbearing for educational or professional pursuits, there is a rising demand for egg freezing services to ensure a successful pregnancy. This study aims to assess the knowledge and beliefs surrounding oocyte cryopreservation, both for medical and social reasons, among female students in Tehran, Iran. Methods An online cross-sectional survey was carried out from March to August of 2022, involving a total of 1279 childless students pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees at universities in Tehran. The participants were between the ages of 18 and 38. Knowledge and beliefs about medical and social oocyte cryopreservation were assessed through Fertility Preservation Survey (FPS) instrument. Results The mean age of the participants was 26.38 ± 4.9. The majority of students expected to be “30–34 years” when they become pregnant with their first child (41.1%, M: 30.3 ± 4.13 years) and “35–39 years” when they give birth to their last child (46.7%, M: 35.28 ± 4.18 years). The students agreed with preserving fertility with medical (93.3%) and social (86.9%) indications and believed the medical (95.1%) and social (87.4%) costs of cryopreservation should be covered by the healthcare system. Among the participants, 75.6% considered cost to be a definite or probable factor in their decision to pursue fertility preservation. The oncology team’s recommendation was identified as the most important factor in deciding on medical egg freezing (92.6%, M: 3.46 ± 0.71). The overall correct response rate for the knowledge questions was 57.7%. The majority of participants (95.5%) agreed that physicians should routinely provide information about egg freezing to women of childbearing age during their regular healthcare visits. Conclusions The research results revealed that female students in Tehran universities have a positive attitude towards medical and social egg freezing, but lack sufficient knowledge about the ideal timing of childbearing. Health professionals could provide detailed information about fertility preservation and age-related infertility as part of routine healthcare visits or reproductive health planning. Additionally, expanding supportive policies and incentives for childbearing established by the government to cover the costs of fertility preservation would be beneficial.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-023-02481-2Oocyte cryopreservationFertility preservationSocial egg freezingFertility sparing treatmentAge-related infertility |
| spellingShingle | Mohammad Mehdi Akhondi Zohreh Behjati Ardakani J. Catja Warmelink Shima Haghani Fahimeh Ranjbar Knowledge and beliefs about oocyte cryopreservation for medical and social reasons in female students: a cross-sectional survey BMC Women's Health Oocyte cryopreservation Fertility preservation Social egg freezing Fertility sparing treatment Age-related infertility |
| title | Knowledge and beliefs about oocyte cryopreservation for medical and social reasons in female students: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_full | Knowledge and beliefs about oocyte cryopreservation for medical and social reasons in female students: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_fullStr | Knowledge and beliefs about oocyte cryopreservation for medical and social reasons in female students: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_full_unstemmed | Knowledge and beliefs about oocyte cryopreservation for medical and social reasons in female students: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_short | Knowledge and beliefs about oocyte cryopreservation for medical and social reasons in female students: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_sort | knowledge and beliefs about oocyte cryopreservation for medical and social reasons in female students a cross sectional survey |
| topic | Oocyte cryopreservation Fertility preservation Social egg freezing Fertility sparing treatment Age-related infertility |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-023-02481-2 |
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