Cross-cutting | Student Poster | 2019

MALE INFERTILITY, SECRECY, AND IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELL-BEING

Narratives from the Global South

Rachael Elekes and Meghana Joshi
geographic area of conducted research.

Introduction

Globally nearly half the instances of infertility are the result of a male condition. Yet, reproductive health research has tended to focus on female experiences. Research here presents narratives of infertility and treatment seeking in regions of Middle-East, Africa, and South Asia and discusses men’s experiences and perspectives. Male experiences of infertility often include instances of shame, disintegration of relationships, economic vulnerability in face of childlessness, mental health concerns, and feelings of inadequacy. Additionally, we see how while fertility treatments for men may have increased chances of achieving biological kinship for some, these techniques have also increased anxieties related to infidelity or kinship especially if using donor sperm or ICSI. Thus, biomedical treatments are not always culturally ‘effective’ and researchers advocate for traditional forms of treatment that alleviate emotional distress.

See the Full Poster