Uninformed decision-making and regret about delaying childbearing decisions: A cross-sectional study.
Tomoko Adachi, Masayuki Endo, Kazutomo Ohashi
PMID 32802369WHAT IT FOUND
More than half of women and nearly half of men seeking fertility treatment regretted delaying childbearing.
Lack of fertility knowledge was the only reason linked to regret in both sexes. Financial security and relationship stability were the most common reasons for delay.
Key findings
0157.5% of women and 46.2% of men seeking fertility treatment agreed or strongly agreed they would have liked to make a childbearing decision earlier.
02Lack of fertility knowledge was significantly associated with higher regret in both women and men after adjusting for age and duration of infertility.
03Establishing a relationship was the most common reason for delaying childbearing for both women (32.4%) and men (23.7%).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The sample included only individuals currently seeking fertility treatment, so results may not apply to the general population or those who successfully conceived without treatment. The study relied on retrospective self-reports, which are subject to recall bias; current feelings of regret may influence how participants remember their past reasons for delay. The survey excluded secondary infertility, limiting generalizability to those who had previously had children.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that financial security or career development causes regret. The study found these were common reasons for delay, but only lack of fertility knowledge was statistically associated with regret. Correlation does not imply that delaying for money leads to regret; it may simply reflect that those who delayed due to ignorance are more likely to regret the outcome.