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Recommendations from the WHO guideline for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infertility†

World Health Organisation Guideline Development Group for Infertility, Mburu G, Santesso N, Brignardello-Petersen R, Kennedy R, Farquhar C, Boivin J, Pennings G et al.

Human reproduction (Oxford, England), 2026

30 participants · 11 citations

Abstract

Study question: What is the recommended prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infertility among individuals and couples?

Summary answer: The World Health Organization (WHO) made 40 recommendations and six good practice statements for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infertility.

What is known already: The field of sexual and reproductive health care, including family planning has progressed in the last several decades. Significant progress has also been made in the field of medically assisted reproduction. Globally, one in six people experience infertility in their lifetime. However, many countries do not include the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infertility in health policies, financing, and services, and many do not have national clinical guidelines for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infertility.

Study design, size, duration: The guideline was developed according to the WHO handbook for guideline development. A Guideline Development Group (GDG) was assembled and included a multidisciplinary and regionally diverse set of clinicians, policymakers, researchers, implementers, and representatives of patient groups (n=30). The GDG prioritized key recommendation questions to address in the guideline.

Participants/materials, setting, methods: New systematic reviews were conducted, or existing reviews updated, to inform the recommendations. The GRADE approach was used to assess the certainty of the evidence and to guide the formulation of…

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