BACKGROUND: To verify the relation between allergy and abortion or infertility. METHODS: A retrospective study was carried out by interviewing 250 women between 40 and 60 years of age, divided into two groups: Group 1 (n = 162): allergic women and Group 2 (n = 148): women with no record of allergy. Patients were randomly assessed at the Gynecology and Obstetric day care units of the "Hospital das Clínicas - UFMG". Women in both groups were identified according to their age and skin color. Previous abortion episodes and difficulty to become pregnant were recorded. Doubts related to these replies excluded the woman from this study. Results were compared using the chi-square test. Differences were considered significant for values corresponding to p < 0.05. RESULTS: A higher incidence of difficulty to become pregnant was observed among the allergic patients in comparison to those non-allergic. In both groups, abortion and infertility were more frequent in Mulatto, followed by Caucasians and Black women. In 44.4% of the patients of group 1 the allergic manifestations worsened. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of allergy seems to be related to a higher rate of infertility.
Allergy; Conception; Pregnancy; Abortion; Infertility; Atopy
