|
|
Most infertile couples are aware of the dramatic advances reproductive technology has made in the recent past, and many of them rely on the media (TV, radio, newspapers, magazines) to remain updated with the latest news about infertility treatments.
However, many news stories about infertility treatment are often misleading and incorrect, and there are many reasons for this. Remember that news, by its very definition, implies something new and unusual. The media is often guilty of oversimplifying or exaggerating results, and headline writers may focus on an angle that gives a distorted impression, which often means that facts are sacrificed at the altar of readability or circulation figures. Since space is limited, many reporters do not provide a balanced perspective, and often focus only on the success stories, so that pictures of doctors and couples holding newborns are very common. While these do provide excellent photo opportunities, the sad stories of the many failures never see light of day. Newspaper articles usually paint a very rosy picture - but these often lead patients to have false hopes and unrealistic expectations. Many reasons can be attributed to the somewhat shoddy standard of reporting in the lay press with respect to infertility. Editors crave for stuff which is 'new' and doctors and hospitals are only too happy to tom-tom their latest gadgets and gizmos. Reporters are often not specialized enough to understand the medical technical background. Often, they do not do their homework properly, which result in misreporting, which is, unfortunately, a common occurrence in India.
The outcome is that patients are often confused and are not sure how the latest advances in reproductive technology apply to them, so that they often rush to their doctor's clinics with the cutting in hand! The report often raises false hopes and gives them unrealistic expectations. As a result, the media loses credibility, so that they often end up performing a disservice to patients and their doctors. Because the public is eager, for any scrap of medical news, the media often reports individual studies out of context, as if each study could stand alone. However, single studies rarely yield a simple 'yes' or 'no' answer to a medical question. One ought to realize that scientific discovery is a process that often takes years to unfold, and an individual medical report or isolated success story means little. Remember, that new does not always means better! For example, many doctors have started using lasers in the IVF laboratory. However, whether these actually help to increase pregnancy rates is still unproven. Nevertheless, patients get carried away easily by the glamour of this "new technologic advance", and are happy to pay more for the use of the laser, even though it may not help them increase their chances of conceiving. This is why some cynics have suggested that the term LASERS should stand for "Latest Advanced Source for Extra Remuneration for Surgeons"!
© Dr. Aniruddha Malpani and Dr. Anjali Malpani www.drmalpani.com
Credits: How to Have a Baby: Overcoming Infertility
_2.jpg)
