Jones Georgina L, Lang Victoria, Hudson Nicky
Department of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, United Kingdom.
Centre for Reproduction Research, De Montfort University, Leicester, United Kingdom.
Semin Reprod Med. 2021 Nov;39(5-06):220-226. doi: 10.1055/s-0041-1731789. Epub 2021 Sep 9.
The year 2018 marked 40 years since the birth of Louise Brown, the first baby born as a result of pioneering in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment. Since then, advances have seen a wide range of reproductive technologies emerge into clinical practice, including adjuvant treatments often referred to as IVF "add-ons." However, these "optional extras" have faced growing criticism, especially when they have often come at additional financial cost to the patient and have little evidence supporting their efficacy to improve pregnancy or birth rates. Despite this, according to the latest national patient survey by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, three quarters of patients who had fertility treatment in the United Kingdom in the past two years had at least one type of treatment add-on highlighting the growing demand for these interventions. This article uses a psychosocial perspective to consider the motivations behind patient and clinician behavior along with the wider societal and economic factors that may be impacting upon the increase in the use of adjuvant treatments in fertility clinics more widely. It suggests the reasons fertility patients use unproven "optional extras" are complex, with interpersonal, psychological, and social factors intertwining to generate an increase in the use of IVF add-ons.
2018年是路易丝·布朗诞生40周年，她是首例通过开创性的体外受精（IVF）治疗诞生的婴儿。从那时起，生殖技术不断进步，多种生殖技术已应用于临床实践，包括常被称为IVF“附加疗法”的辅助治疗。然而，这些“可选额外项目”面临越来越多的批评，特别是因为它们往往会给患者带来额外的经济负担，而且几乎没有证据支持它们能提高妊娠率或出生率。尽管如此，根据人类受精与胚胎学管理局最新的全国患者调查，在过去两年中，英国四分之三接受生育治疗的患者至少接受过一种附加治疗，这凸显了对这些干预措施的需求不断增加。本文从社会心理角度探讨了患者和临床医生行为背后的动机，以及可能更广泛地影响生育诊所辅助治疗使用增加的社会和经济因素。文章指出，生育患者使用未经证实的“可选额外项目”的原因很复杂，人际、心理和社会因素相互交织，导致IVF附加疗法的使用增加。
