Preoperative psychological evaluation of uterus transplant recipients, partners, and living donors: Suggested framework

Abstract

Uterus transplant has become a real option for women with uterine-factor infertility to become pregnant and give birth. The screening before uterus transplant consists of a multidisciplinary evaluation and includes the potential recipient, living donor, and, to some extent, the recipient's partner and future co-parent. The psychological evaluation has evolved from broad-based screening in the first uterus transplant trial, where the aim was to find suitable candidates for a novel experimental procedure with an unknown outcome, to a more directed screening with specific psychological domains for a complex infertility treatment with promising results. This report outlines a consensus by investigators with pioneering experience in the field of the key factors and suggests a framework for psychological evaluation of recipients and their partners as well as for live uterus donors before uterus transplant. We identify the main areas of particular value to the recipient screening (general psychological health, factors associated with infertility, and medication adherence), the partner (general psychological health and factors associated with infertility), and the living donor (psychological health and motivation to donate, especially in the case of the nondirected donor).