Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40944797›Full record

ArticleQuality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation2025

Understanding health-related quality of life in Chinese infertility patients: a qualitative study.

Zhao Shi, Yu Zheng, Xiaohong Zhu, Zhuxin Mao, Hongwei Nie, Gang Chen, Shunping Li

Registry-linked trialAbstract readMulticenter Study
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07308561 (The Relationship Between Quality of Life, Anxiety Levels, and Attitudes Toward Artificial Intelligence Among Women Undergoing Infertility Treatment), which is not on this map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT07308561 recruitingnot on this map

The Relationship Between Quality of Life, Anxiety Levels, and Attitudes Toward Artificial Intelligence Among Women Undergoing Infertility Treatment

TypeobservationalSponsorAcibadem UniversityRan2025 to 2026Enrolled191ConditionsInfertility, Female, Artificial Intelligence, Quality of Life, Anxiety
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Zhao ShiDepartment of Social Medicine and Health Management, School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, China.
Yu ZhengBlood Center of Shandong Province, Jinan, China.
Xiaohong ZhuDepartment of Social Medicine and Health Management, School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, China.
Zhuxin MaoCentre for Health Economics Research and Modelling Infectious Diseases (CHERMID), University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
Hongwei NieState Key Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine and Offspring Health, Center for Reproductive Medicine, Institute of Women, Children and Reproductive Health, Shandong University, Jinan, China.
Gang ChenMelbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
Shunping LiDepartment of Social Medicine and Health Management, School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, China. lishunping@sdu.edu.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8144-6220

Funding

Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation ZR2021MG010
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeInfertility is a global issue that significantly impacts health-related quality of life (HRQoL), HRQoL has become increasingly relevant in health policies, patient-centered care, and shared clinical decision-making. Socio-contextual factors influence reproductive populations' attitudes towards childbearing, ultimately shaping their HRQoL. The objective of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of fertility issues from the perspectives of infertility patients and fertility professionals, and to develop a comprehensive conceptual framework for understanding infertility patients' HRQoL.

methodsParticipants were recruited from a national multicenter interview survey, including four reproductive centers in the east (Jinan), west (Chongqing), south (Guangzhou), and north (Shenyang) of China. This qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured face-to-face interviews with 93 participants. Furthermore, considering that fertility is a relatively private topic, the infertility patients' electronic diaries recorded on an online community (Zhihu) were used as supplementary material. A grounded theory approach was used to analyze the data.

resultsIn total, 77 infertility patients and 10 fertility professionals were included. A total of 2580 initial concepts were identified, and 71 initial categories were derived from the initial concepts. By summarizing and sorting out the initial categories, 18 sub-categories were identified, including symptoms, physical functioning, role-physical, negative emotions, and reproductive stress, etc. Four principal categories were identified: (i) physical health, (ii) mental health, (iii) social health, and (iv) subjective wellbeing. Finally, we derived a disease-specific HRQoL conceptual framework for infertility patients based on the revised Wilson and Cleary HRQoL model.

conclusionsThis study provides a culturally sensitive HRQoL framework for infertility patients in Eastern contexts, addressing gender-specific experiences, and establishing a foundation for tailored interventions that support patient-centered infertility care. Furthermore, these findings will support the development of a novel, disease-specific HRQoL instrument for male and female infertility patients.

Indexed as

InfertilityQuality of LifeAdultChinaEast Asian PeopleFemaleHumansInterviews as TopicMaleMiddle AgedQualitative ResearchSurveys and QuestionnairesHealth-related quality of lifeInfertilityPatient-reported outcomeQualitative studyReproductive health

Identifiers

PMID40944797

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.