Anxiety and perceptive functioning of infertile women during in-vitro fertilization: exploratory survey of an Italian sample

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Abstract
The aim of this study was to study the emotional impact of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and any possible influence due to the type of diagnosis, duration of infertility, number of cycles and type of responses to treatment. The study was carried out on 200 patients admitted to hospital for the final stages of IVF (oocyte retrieval and embryo transfer). The psychological measures taken into consideration were: state and trait anxiety levels (Stait–Trait Anxiety), unconscious and symptomatic anxiety, perception of self and of others (EWI). Monitoring of anxiety levels during hospitalization highlighted significant differences with respect to the state anxiety values (P < 0.01) and general anxiety (P < 0.05), but not with respect to trait anxiety. The level of state anxiety of women with a diagnosis of infertility was significantly lower (P < 0.05). Women who have experienced infertility of medium to long duration presented a significantly lower state anxiety value (P < 0.01). The failure of oocyte fertilization determines a significant increase in state anxiety level (P < 0.01) There were no significant differences in anxiety values with respect to the cycle number. Perceptive functioning was normal.