Use of the Internet as the only outlet for talking about infertility

Objective: To gather information about demographic characteristics, medical status, mode of Internet participation, and psychological well-being of participants whose only outlets (OOs) for talking about infertility are Internet medical and support forums and to compare them with persons who have additional outlets (AOs). Design: Prospective Internet-based survey. Setting: Website of a nonprofit international infertility organization. Patient(s): Five hundred eighty-nine persons submitting fully completed surveys. Intervention(s): Internet-based survey with 134 items. Main Outcome Measure(s): Survey of types of Internet participation, benefits of participation, self-assessed ability to cope with aspects of infertility, perceived stress, perceived support from relatives and friends, and 21-item Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), which is an instrument designed to measure depressive symptomatology. Result(s): Only-outlet and AO participants were comparable in their medical history and treatments. Only-outlet participants had less formal education, were less wealthy, and more likely to be homemakers. Compared with AO participants, OO participants were more depressed and got less real-world support while feeling more supported on the Internet. Conclusion(s): Used properly, the Internet can help people facing infertility by educating, empowering, and diminishing their feelings of depression. But the Internet can also be used inappropriately to withdraw from real-world interactions. (C) 2002 by American Society for Reproductive Medicine.