The level of anxiety and depression in patients admitted to an infertility clinic

Abstract

Aim: Infertility affects women biologically, psychologically and socially and as a result, it decreases the quality of life. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of infertility on anxiety and depression in women.Material and Method: The study was planned as an observational study. Patients who were diagnosed as infertile and were admitted to Medistate Hospital Obstetrics, In Vitro Fertilization outpatient clinic, Adana City Training and Research Hospital, and Obstetrics and Gynecology outpatient clinic between May and November 2019 were included in the study. The inclusion criteria were the patients who had been diagnosed as infertility for at least one year. A questionnaire including ’Beck Anxiety Inventory’ and “Beck Depression Inventory’’ was completed with the face-to-face interview technique by volunteer infertile women who met the inclusion criteria.Results: The study was completed with 200 volunteer infertile patients. According to the depression score, 60 (30%) of the participants were normal, 84 (42%) had mild, 40 (20%) had moderate and 16 (8%) had severe depression. According to the anxiety score, 72 (36%) of the participants were normal, 78 (39%) had mild, 32 (16%) had moderate and 18 (9%) had severe anxiety.Conclusion: Increased depression and anxiety scores should be considered in infertile patients. Further studies are needed to indicate which type of psychological treatment is more effective at the individual level.