A Scoping Review of the Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Patients Under Infertility Treatment

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to conduct a scoping review to understand how the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has affected patients under infertility treatment.Methods: The 5 steps of the scoping review by Arksey and O’Malley were applied: (1) identifying the research question; (2) identifying relevant studies; (3) study selection; (4) charting the data; and (5) collating, summarizing, and reporting the results. Using 2 databases (PubMed and Cochrane Library), studies on COVID-19 and infertility treatment were searched, and 13 articles were selected for analysis.Results: The studies were conducted in North America (5 articles), Europe (3 articles), Asia (2 articles), and other regions (3 articles). The academic fields of the published journals were primarily reproductive medicine (10 articles), followed by psychiatry and psychology (2 articles), and complementary medicine (1 article). Regarding the research topic, studies on stress and anxiety were the most common (7 articles), followed by pregnancy rates (3 articles), and pregnancy planning or treatment decisions (3 articles). The COVID-19 pandemic had a negative effect on stress and anxiety of patients in 5 out of 7 articles, no changes in pregnancy rates in 3 out of 3 articles, and negative effects on pregnancy planning or treatment decisions in 2 out of 3 articles.Conclusion: The results of this review suggest that evidence-based information on patients with infertility is needed to prevent unnecessary anxiety, stress, and treatment delays in the upcoming postpandemic transition period.