Going beyond the surface: a mixed-method exploration of infertility-related quality of life of women with endometriosis

Cristina Zarbo, Angelo Compare, Frigerio L, Luigi Frigerio, Secomandi R, Rita Secomandi, Adriano Bellia, Bellia A, Enrico Betto, Betto E, Ilario Candeloro, Candeloro I, Valentina Dessi, Valentina Dessì, Dessi V, Chiara Malandrino, Malandrino C, Chiara Peduzzi, Peduzzi C, Ventura M, Mariangela Ventura, Agostino Brugnera
Psychology, health & medicine · 2022 · vol. 28(10) , pp. 2832–2847 · doi:10.1080/13548506.2022.2159456 · PMID:36535893 · W4311935993
article OA: closed CC0 ⤵ 5 in-corpus citations
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⚙ AI-generated summary by claude@2026-06, 2026-06-12 ⓘ

This mixed-method study explored the quality of life for women with endometriosis and infertility, finding significant impacts on physical, relational, and emotional well-being, particularly related to fertility treatments and previous miscarriages.

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Abstract

Literature about the impact of infertility and endometriosis on Quality of Life (QoL) is scarce and needs further investigation. Our aim was to deeply investigate the QoL of women with diagnoses of both endometriosis and infertility with failed Assisted Reproductive Treatments (ART). We conducted a concurrent mixed-method study composed of both quantitative and qualitative surveys. The quantitative survey included 22 women who completed the FertiQoL. The qualitative survey included 15 of them who provided written answers to open-ended questions aimed at deeply exploring their QoL. Data were initially analyzed separately and then combined in a meta-matrix. From the quantitative survey emerged that women at higher risk for low QoL were those who have experienced previous spontaneous miscarriages and that the domains of the FertiQoL related to fertility treatment (i.e. increased pain severity, disturbed daily life routine, and dissatisfaction with services) were the most critical. From the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) of qualitative survey, narrations about the physical, relational, social, emotional-cognitive, and behavioural impact of the diseases emerged. Mixed findings showed that the QoL of this population was scarce and that different levels (the inner world, the behaviours, the relational context, and the environmental context) are strictly connected and interact between them in influencing QoL. Multi-level preventive or supportive programs (with specific attention to pain experience, coping strategies, quality of services and governmental support) are required for this population.

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Condition tags

endometriosisinfertility

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometriosis

Citation neighborhood

Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

References (46)

Cited by (5)

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europepmc
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License: CC0 · commercial use OK