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Significantly fewer children are born to couples when 1 partner has type 1 diabetes, according to results from a cross-sectional study conducted in Germany. The researchers reported that the overall fertility rate for women in the background population was 1.36 children during the reference year (2009). In the cohort of women with type 1 diabetes, however, the fertility rate fell to 0.88. In men with type 1 diabetes, the fertility rate was 0.65, the authors said.

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NFERTILITY: A person who is infertile has a reduced ability to have a child. A diagnosis of infertility does not necessarily mean a person is sterile-- that is, physically unable ever to have a child. Up to 15 percent of all couples are infertile, but only 1 to 2 percent are sterile. Half of couples who seek help can eventually bear a child, either on their own or with medical assistance. In about one in five infertile couples, both partners have contributing problems. In about 15 percent of couples, no cause is found after all tests have been done, called "unexplained infertility."

Despite concerns that removing both of a woman's ovaries would raise her chances of dying from diseases associated with aging, a large new study suggests the procedure may be safe. Researchers found that women who were 45 years old or older when they had both ovaries removed had a slightly lower chance of dying over the length of the study than peers who didn't have the procedure. Often women who are having their uterus removed during a hysterectomy are given the option to have their ovaries removed at the same time.