Infertility Injustice: Why We Need Better Options to Treat Male Factor Infertility

Reproduction is generally associated with women and consequently men’s reproductive is often neglected. One clear example of this is the discrepancy in female and male contraceptives. Women have over a dozen types of contraceptives, including hormonal, nonhormonal, barrier, and long-acting reversible contraceptives. In contrast, men have only 2 options: vasectomy and condoms. Men do not have hormonal methods, nor do they have long-acting reversible contraceptives, both of which tend to be the most effective and often the easiest to use (e.g. methods like the IUD you can “set and forget” for years). This discrepancy in options means that most heterosexual couples rely on female methods, an arrangement not only burdens women, but it also reduces men’s reproductive autonomy. I have argued that we need more and better male contraceptives as a matter of “contraceptive justice.” Unfortunately, in the field of reproductive medicine, this discrepancy in options between women and men is not limited to contraception. There is also a similar injustice at play with infertility treatment. There are various options for women with female factor infertility, including medications to stimulate ovulation, intrauterine insemination (IUI), and IVF. All these treatments target women’s bodies: causing ovulation, facilitating meeting of an egg and sperm, and increasing the probability of implantation. For IUI and IVF, men need to contribute sperm and theref...
Source: blog.bioethics.net - Category: Medical Ethics Authors: Tags: Health Care Justice Author: Campo-Engelstein Fertility reproductive medicine reproductive rights syndicated Women's Reproductive Rights Source Type: blogs