Prioritising for fertility treatments--the effect of excluding women with a high body mass index.
The effect of clinical priority access criteria for access to infertility treatment was examined for women outside the body mass index (BMI) range of 18-32 kg/m2. Treatments and outcomes were analysed from 1280 cases referred from 1998 to May 2005. Sixteen percent of women had a BMI of >32 kg/m2. Overall, 38% of these women had a birth from conceiving a treatment-related pregnancy or spontaneous pregnancy, compared with 52% of women with BMI < 32 kg/m2. Weight loss allowed women in the BMI group >32<35 kg/m2 to access treatment, but women in higher BMI groups were less successful.
Gillett
W R
WR
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand. wayne.gillett@otago.ac.nz
Putt
T
T
Farquhar
C M
CM
D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005260:Female; D006292:Health Priorities / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000628:therapy*; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications*; D016079:Refusal to Treat / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012099:Reproductive Techniques / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016896:Treatment Outcome