Increased depression and anxiety in infertile Japanese women resulting from lack of husband's support and feelings of stress.
We report that infertile women in Japan as well as in the Western world have high levels of emotional distress, anxiety, and depression. The reasons for anxiety and depression in infertile women are easy to presume but remain unclear. We conducted the present study to assess the relationship between the anxiety and depression of infertile Japanese women and their thought processes and emotional well-being with regard to their infertility. A cross-sectional questionnaire was administered to 101 infertile Japanese women who visited the infertility clinic at Tokai University. Inventories included the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and our original infertility questionnaire, which is composed of 22 questions to assess attitudes and emotional status in facing the stigma of infertility. After factor analysis, comparison between the HADS and the infertility questionnaire was made with simultaneous multiple regression analyses. Anxiety and depression in childless Japanese women were significantly associated with lack of husband's support and feeling stress. Our findings should prove useful in designing and implementing psychological support programs for infertile Japanese women. Psychological interventions to relieve or diminish these conditions might have significant therapeutic benefits for women attending infertility clinics in Japan.
Matsubayashi
Hidehiko
H
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Center for Specialized Clinical Science, Tokai University School of Medicine, Isehara, Kanagawa 259-1193, Japan. hide-m@is.icc.u-tokai.ac.jp
Hosaka
Takashi
T
Izumi
Shun-ichiro
S
Suzuki
Takahiro
T
Kondo
Akane
A
Makino
Tsunehisa
T
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000275:Adjustment Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology; D000328:Adult; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology; D044466:Asian People / Q000523:psychology*; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000523:psychology*; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage / Q000523:psychology*; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011287:Prejudice; D012649:Self Concept; D012944:Social Support; D018454:Spouses / Q000523:psychology*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications*