Infertility and obesity are common among women with Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and related to poor quality of life (QoL). Obesity may confer an elevated adverse effect of infertility-related stress given its relationship with increased susceptibility to stress. This study aimed to investigate the association of infertility-related stress with QoL among infertile women with PCOS, and to evaluate whether body mass index (BMI) modifies this association.
A cross-sectional study was conducted with 306 participants recruited from the infertility outpatient clinic. A self-administered, structured questionnaire including COMPI Fertility Problem Stress Scale (COMPI-FPSS) and the modified PCOS health-related QoL questionnaire (MPCOSQ) was conducted in this study. The moderation model was conducted by the PROCESS macro using SPSS.
The mean score of QoL was 142.67 (SD = 20.11), ranged from 93 to 183 (theoretical range = 30-210). QoL was negatively associated with infertility-related stress (r = -0.373, P < 0.001). Moderation analysis indicated that the interaction term between infertility-related stress and BMI significantly predicted QoL (β = -0.154, P = 0.005, f = 0.03) as well as emotional disturbance (β = -0.170, P = 0.002, f = 0.04). Specifically, higher BMI significantly exacerbated the effect of infertility-related stress on QoL and emotional disturbance.
Infertile women with PCOS experienced poor QoL. The moderation role of BMI provides a better understanding of individual difference in relationship between infertility-related stress and QoL. Interventions aiming to improve QoL among infertile women with PCOS should focus on alleviating infertility-related stress, especially among women with high BMI.

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