Subfecundity in the Republic of Moldova: Prevalence and Associated Demographic and Health Factors

Cheryl C. Sawyer, United Nations

The successor states to the former Soviet Union have experienced dramatic declines in fertility during the 1990s. The high abortion rates found in many of the successor states, as well as the prevalence of pelvic infection caused by abortion or childbirth complications and sexually transmitted infections, raise concern about women's future childbearing capacity. The present study reviews the literature on definitions and estimates of infertility, then examines estimates from the former Soviet region and other populations and evidence on predictors of infertility. Data from the 1997 Moldova Reproductive Health Survey are used to develop estimates of current infertility in various subgroups of the population of Moldova. The effects of abortions, pelvic inflammatory disease, and past IUD use on current infertility are assessed, controlling for several other demographic and health variables that have been shown to be associated with infertility.