Marital satisfaction and associated factors among female patients at Infertility Clinic of King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital.

Abstract

Background : There are evidences that infertility has major impacts on marital satisfaction, especially among women. However, marital satisfaction among female patients at Infertility Clinic has not been studied.

Objective : To examine marital satisfaction as well as associated factors among female patients at Infertility Clinic of King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital.

Design : A cross – sectional descriptive study.

Setting : King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital.

Materials and Methods : Data were collected from 207 female patients at the Infertility Clinic. Self-report included: 1) General background; 2) Fertility information; 3) Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS); 4) Beck Depression Inventory-IA (BDI-IA); 5) Attitude toward sex roles; and, 6) Sexual satisfaction. Univariate analysis (e.g. t-Test and Chi-Square) was used to examine associated factors with marital satisfaction and multivariate analysis was used to determine the predictors of marital satisfaction among this group of female patients.

Results : Most of the subjects (85.4%) had moderate level of marital satisfaction. Univariate analysis revealed 5 factors significantly associated with marital satisfaction: depression, sexual satisfaction, wife’s income, duration of menstruation and interval of menstruation. Multivariate analysis revealed 3 factors significantly associated with marital satisfaction: wife’s income, duration of menstruation and interval of menstruation.

Conclusion : Marital satisfaction in this population is comparable with other infertility studies. Knowing the risk factors will help medical personnel in identifying high-risk women and provide appropriate assistance.