A rapid scoping review of fear of infertility in Africa
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REVIEW
Open Access
A rapid scoping review of fear of infertility in Africa Jacky Boivin1* , Judith Carrier2, Joseph Mumba Zulu3 and Deborah Edwards2
Abstract Background: Fear of infertility (FOI) is often reported in studies about reproductive health but this literature not yet mapped. The aim of this rapid scoping review of qualitative studies was to describe the nature of FOI in Africa. Methods: Eligibility criteria were qualitative data from Africa reporting views of women and men of any age. MEDL INE and CINAHL databases were searched for English language citations to February 2019 using keywords related to fear, infertility and Africa. Two independent reviewers screened texts for inclusion. Results: Of 248 citations identified, 38 qualitative and six review papers were included. FOI was reported in diverse groups (e.g., men, women, fertile, infertile, married, unmarried, teachers, religious leaders). Two types of fears were identified: (1) fear of triggering infertility due to specific reproductive choices and (2) fear of the dire future consequences of infertility. Choices were perceived to affect fertility via internal accumulation and blockage (e.g., of menstrual blood), structural damage (e.g., burnt eggs), internal movement of contraceptive material, deliberate toxicity preventing population growth and behavioral effects impeding sexual activity. Diverse feared consequences of infertility were reported (e.g., polygamy, economic hardships). Fears were reported to affect reproductive behaviour (e.g., stopping contraception), help-seeking and social behaviour. Conclusion: FOI is a phenomenon that should be studied in its own right. Fears could originate from genuine threats, incorrect knowledge, distortions of truths, or dissemination of false information. Rigorous studies are needed to better understand FOI and integrate it in health education, client counselling and family planning service provision. Keywords: Infertility, Health education, Family planning service provision, Counselling, Qualitative research
Plain English summary Parenthood is one of the most desired and valued goals of adulthood. Due to this importance some past studies in Africa have reported that people fear having fertility problems, known as fear of infertility. Not much is known about who reports fear of infertility, what the fear is about or how it affects health behaviours. To learn more about it we searched databases and identified studies in Africa providing descriptions of fear of infertility from men and women. In total 44 published records * Correspondence: [email protected] 1 School of Psychology. College of Biomedical and Life Sciences, Cardiff University, 70 Park Place, CF10 3AT Cardiff, Wales, UK Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
were examined in detail and summarised. The results showed that fear of infertility was reported by many groups (e.g., married, unmarried, fertile or not, doctors, teachers, religious leaders, men, women). Fear presented itself in two ways. First, peopl
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