 Infertility is a significant health issue in the U.S. as well as globally. In addition to the large health and fiscal impacts of infertility, the inability to conceive can be devastating to individuals or couples. Research suggest that between 12% and 18% of couples struggle with infertility,[1] which may be caused by a wide variety of factors including genetic abnormalities, aging, acute and chronic diseases, treatments for certain conditions, behavioral factors, and exposure to environmental, occupational, and infectious hazards. However, many questions about infertility remain unanswered. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the National Public Health Action Plan for the Detection, Prevention and Management of Infertility. This plan was created in consultation with many governmental and nongovernmental partners. NIOSH contributed to this Action Plan, specifically related to reducing exposures to occupational agents that can harm reproductive health and fertility in women and men. Environmental and occupational hazards account for an unknown proportion of infertility cases, but are known to affect reproductive health and fertility in women and men, and suspected of causing declining human sperm quality in industrialized countries.[2], [3], [4] An evaluation conducted in developed countries in the 1980s by the World Health Organization (WHO) found that 37% of infertility cases were attributable to female factors, 8% were attributable to... |
