the association between stigma with women's demographic and obstetrical characteristics in the infertility clinic: a cross-sectional study

Background: infertile women frequently experience challenges to their core feminine identity, resulting in feelings of inferiority and stigma on a global scale. various factors influence women's perceptions of infertility stigma; however, the relationship between these factors and the perception of infertility stigma remains inadequately understood. objectives: this study aims to determine the association between stigma and the demographic and obstetric characteristics of infertile women. methods: a cross-sectional study was conducted involving 270 infertile women who sought treatment at the akbarabadi infertility center in tehran, iran, from 2021 to 2022. a convenience sampling method was employed. data were collected using the infertility stigma scale (iss), alongside personal and obstetric characteristics. descriptive statistics, including frequency, percentage, and median, were computed. the kruskal-wallis and mann-whitney u tests, along with linear regression analysis, were performed using stata version 14. results: the median score for total infertility stigma was 40 (iqr = 88). among the components of infertility stigma, social stigma scored the lowest (median = 7, iqr = 18), while general stigma scored the highest (median = 13, iqr = 31). the perception of infertility stigma exhibited a statistically significant relationship with economic status (b = -21.09, p = 0.01, ci: -23.7, -3.4), underlying disorders (b = -107.11, p = 0.01, ci: -120, -0.2), and women's employment (b = -5, p = 0.06, ci: -9.3, -3). approximately 11% of the variance in infertility stigma could be attributed to the independent variables of employment status, economic conditions, and underlying disorders. conclusions: the findings of this study indicate that addressing underlying medical conditions, enhancing economic status, and facilitating suitable employment opportunities for infertile women may contribute to a reduction in the stigma associated with infertility.