SAN DIEGO, April 20 (UPI) -- San Diego scientists say women who worry about medical methods for getting pregnant release fewer eggs than those who don't.
And as a result, they are less likely to have a healthy baby -- despite the advantage of assisted reproductive technology, a spokeswoman at the University of California-San Diego said.
Specifically, women who were concerned about their personal fertility program had 20 percent fewer eggs retrieved and 19 percent fewer eggs fertilized than women who worried less, Dr. Marian Damewood said Tuesday.
Also, women who were very concerned about missing work had 30 percent fewer eggs fertilized. Those who were very concerned about finances associated with assisted fertility also had a very high risk of not delivering a live infant.
"While no one has elucidated the physiological relationship between women's concerns and the outcomes of their ART cases, we know that stress has a number of negative systemic effects. Worry about missing work and fears surrounding ART medical procedures are definitely stress-inducers."
