Journal of Education and Health Promotion

Complementary and alternative medicine use in infertility: A review of infertile women’s needs

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

. Farangis Sharifi 1
. Robab Latifnejad Roudsari 2

1 Student Research Committee, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

2 Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran, Department of Midwifery, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

Abstract
The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is common in infertile women in different
countries. The purpose of the current study was to review the infertile women’s needs in relation
to CAM use. This narrative review was conducted through searching English databases including
Scopus, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane library as well as Persian databases consisted
of SID, and Magiran. The used keywords included “CAM/therapy, needs, and Infertility.” All studies
published in English peer‑reviewed journals from conception to October 2020, which examined the
infertile women’s needs in the field of CAM use were included in the review. In the process of data
extraction, two researchers screened the title, abstract, and full text of the articles. Out of the 2166
articles reviewed, 29 articles including six qualitative and mixed methods studies, four review, and 19
quantitative studies met the inclusion criteria. The results showed that infertile women have different
needs in six domains consisted of educational and informational needs, the need for psychological
counseling, supportive needs, the need for CAM use counseling, the need to treatment consistent with
women’s culture and demands, and the need to the integration of CAM with conventional medicine.
Awareness of infertile women’s needs toward CAM use can help health policymakers and planners
in designing and implementing counseling services in accordance with the demands and culture
of infertile couples. It also helps to develop a coherent program to integrate the use of CAM in the
classical infertility treatment.

Keywords

Complementary and alternative medicine
infertility
need
women
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Journal of Education and Health Promotion
Volume 12, Issue 5
June 2022
Pages 1-11

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