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: Bioethics Today Tags: Health Care Justice Author: Campo-Engelstein Fertility reproductive medicine reproductive rights syndicated Women's Reproductive Rights Source Type: blogs
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