Abstract

Aim: To determine the relationship between the mental status of couples receiving infertility treatment and their perceived social support.

Study desing:Descriptive study

Place and duration of study:In Vitro Fertilisation Center between January and April 2018 in a university hospital in Antalya.

Methods: 148 infertile couples who received infertility treatment at the data of the research were gathered through a questionnaire for determining socio-demographic and infertility related characteristics of the couples receiving infertility treatment, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support and Brief Symptom Inventory.

Results: In the study, the average age of infertile women was 31.4±5.6 and that of men was 34.5±5.2. In the study, the mean Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Supportscore of the women was determined to be 62.6±14.2, whereas that of the men 59.2± 14.2. The mean score received by the women from depression subscale of Brief Symptom Inventory was determined to be 10.2±8.9, and the mean score received by the men 6.7±6.6. A strong negative relationship between the total Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Supportscore and the Brief Symptom Inventory subscale mean scores (p <0. 01).

Conclusions: As a result of the research, as the social support levels perceived by couples receiving infertility treatment increased, their symptoms of anxiety, depression, negative self-perception, somatization, and hostility was determined to decrease. Keywords: Infertility treatment, İnfertile couples, Mental status, Social support, Nursing.