WHO Issues First Global Infertility Care Guidelines, With 40 Recommendations

Overview

• The guidance establishes a unified, evidence-based framework spanning prevention, diagnosis and treatment, from basic management to IUI and IVF.
• WHO estimates that one in six people experience infertility over their lifetime and reports stark inequities in access to safe, affordable care.
• The recommendations call for routine evaluation of male factors, an area the organization says is frequently overlooked in clinical practice.
• Prevention priorities include tackling untreated sexually transmitted infections and tobacco use, alongside broader public information on fertility.
• Countries are asked to adapt the guidance to local contexts, expand financing to reduce out-of-pocket burdens—such as IVF cycles that can cost twice a household’s annual income—and track implementation and equity outcomes.