5 Apr 2023 • According to a new report published on Tuesday by WHO. Around 17.5% of the adult population – roughly 1 in 6 worldwide – experience infertility, showing the urgent need to increase access to affordable, high-quality fertility care for those in need.

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

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

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

Source: WHO |Read full story