INFERTILITY AND SUBFERTILITY IN NORWEGIAN WOMEN AGED 40-42 - PREVALENCE AND RISK-FACTORS

Background. There are few population estimates of the prevalence of in fertility that also include some information about medical conditions and social classification of study objects, This is a study of 4034 ou t of a total of 5139 (78% of all invited) women in one county of Norwa y. Methods. All female inhabitants born 1950 to 1952 living in the cou nty were invited to participate in a health screening. The screening c omprised a clinical screening and two questionnaires; one about reprod uctive history and infertility. Results. This survey found permanent p rimary infertility in 2.6% of the women. Subfertility, as at least one year's delay of pregnancy, was reported by 7.7%. A history of differe nt reproductive problems was associated with impaired fertility. Thirt y-two percent of primary infertile women had a history of PID, 13% had experienced amenorrhea and almost 40% reported premenstrual tension c ompared with lower frequencies in women with normal fertility (11.0%, 3.3% and 29.4% respectively). Conclusions. Up to 10% of the female pop ulation may experience infertility at one stage in their reproductive carter. Clinicians should pay special attention to women presenting an y genital or reproductive disorder regarding risks for future fertilit y impairment.