Background: There are few population estimates of the prevalence of infertility that also include some information about medical conditions and social classification of study objects. This is a study of 4034 out of a total of 5139 (78% of all invited) women in one county of Norway.
Methods: All female inhabitants born 1950 to 1952 living in the county were invited to participate in a health screening. The screening comprised a clinical screening and two questionnaires; one about reproductive history and infertility.
Results: This survey found permanent primary infertility in 2.6% of the women. Subfertility, as at least one year's delay of pregnancy, was reported by 7.7%. A history of different reproductive problems was associated with impaired fertility. Thirty-two percent of primary infertile women had a history of PID, 13% had experienced amenorrhea and almost 40% reported premenstrual tension, compared with lower frequencies in women with normal fertility (11.0%, 3.3% and 29.4% respectively).
Conclusions: Up to 10% of the female population may experience infertility at one stage in their reproductive career. Clinicians should pay special attention to women presenting any genital or reproductive disorder regarding risks for future fertility impairment.