Validation of a new scale for measuring concerns of women undergoing assisted reproductive technologies (CART)

A new instrument was developed and assessed for internal consistency, validity and test-retest reliability. A total of 151 women undergoing IVF/GIFT in California rated concern levels about anesthesia, surgery, recovery time, side-effects, finances, missing work, pain, insufficient information and delivering a healthy baby. Validity was assessed by comparing CART to the Infertility Reaction Scale and Bipolar Profile of Moods States, and reliability was investigated by calculating correlations between repeat CARTs. Factor analysis identified three domains: procedural concerns; missing work; and achieving a successful delivery. CART is a new, valid and reliable instrument, which measures concerns during IVF/GIFT not previously identified by existing instruments. Copyright © 2007 SAGE Publications Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]