Table 1. Characteristics of Female Surgeons vs Male Surgeons and Obstetric Factors Among Female Nonsurgeons vs Female Surgeons.
| Characteristic | No. (%) | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male surgeons (n = 158) | Female surgeons (n = 692) | ||
| Sociodemographic characteristics of female surgeons and male surgeons (n = 850) | |||
| Relationship status | .59 | ||
| Single, never married | 0 | 4 (0.6) | |
| Married or domestic partnership | 153 (96.8) | 661 (95.5) | |
| Significant other | 0 | 6 (0.9) | |
| Widowed, divorced, or separated and single | 5 (3.2) | 21 (3.0) | |
| Partner occupation | <.001 | ||
| Physician | 51 (33.3) | 88 (13.2) | |
| Surgeon | NAa | 119 (17.2) | |
| Other | 63 (41.2) | 389 (58.3) | |
| Unemployed | 39 (25.5) | 71 (10.6) | |
| Race or ethnicityb | |||
| White | 117 (74.1) | 540 (78.0) | .28 |
| African American/Black | 5 (3.2) | 38 (5.5) | .23 |
| Asian | 25 (15.8) | 109 (15.8) | .98 |
| Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander | 1 (0.6) | 1 (0.1) | .25 |
| Native American | 2 (1.3) | 0 | .003 |
| Hispanic/Latinx | 8 (5.1) | 24 (3.5) | .34 |
| Otherc | 4 (2.5) | 9 (1.3) | .26 |
| Age, median (IQR), y | 45 (38-52) | 39 (36-44) | <.001 |
| Time since residency, median (IQR), y | 13 (5-18) | 7 (4-12) | <.001 |
| Delayed having children because of surgical training | 69 (43.7) | 450 (65.0) | <.001 |
| No. of biologic children | <.001 | ||
| 1 | 37 (23.4) | 247 (35.7) | |
| 2 | 61 (38.6) | 339 (49.0) | |
| ≥3 | 60 (38.0) | 106 (15.3) | |
| Used ARTd | 27 (17.1) | 172 (24.9) | .04 |
| Title | <.001 | ||
| Instructor | 4 (2.5) | 19 (2.8) | |
| Assistant professor | 42 (26.6) | 224 (32.4) | |
| Associate professor | 31 (19.6) | 85 (12.3) | |
| Full professor | 36 (22.8) | 30 (4.3) | |
| Practicing surgeon in nonacademic setting | 19 (12.0) | 209 (30.2) | |
| Fellow | 9 (5.7) | 46 (6.7) | |
| Resident | 17 (10.8) | 79 (11.4) | |
| Method of survey access | <.001 | ||
| Association of Women Surgeons | 15 (9.5) | 98 (14.2) | |
| Association of Academic Surgery | 52 (32.9) | 70 (10.1) | |
| Society of Asian Academic Surgeons | 7 (4.4) | 8 (1.2) | |
| Society of Black Academic Surgeons | 1 (0.6) | 6 (0.9) | |
| Women in Thoracic Surgery | 1 (0.6) | 13 (1.9) | |
| American College of Surgeons Young Fellows Association | 4 (2.5) | 14 (2.0) | |
| American College of Surgeons bulletin | 8 (5.1) | 33 (4.8) | |
| Facebook surgeon moms’ group | 0 | 334 (48.27) | |
| 11 (7.0) | 37 (5.4) | ||
| Personal communication/notification | 59 (37.3) | 79 (11.4) | |
| Specialty | <.001 | ||
| Breast | 0 | 65 (9.4) | |
| Cardiothoracic | 7 (4.4) | 32 (4.6) | |
| Colorectal | 15 (9.5) | 42 (6.1) | |
| Otolaryngology | 0 | 20 (2.9) | |
| Endocrine | 3 (1.9) | 15 (2.2) | |
| General | 15 (9.5) | 90 (13.0) | |
| Hepatobiliary | 3 (1.9) | 5 (0.7) | |
| Minimally invasive/bariatric | 9 (5.7) | 50 (7.2) | |
| Neurosurgery | 0 | 5 (0.7) | |
| Orthopedic | 4 (2.5) | 18 (2.6) | |
| Pediatric | 30 (19.0) | 46 (6.7) | |
| Plastic | 7 (4.4) | 46 (6.7) | |
| Oncology | 15 (9.5) | 39 (5.6) | |
| Transplant | 3 (1.9) | 10 (1.5) | |
| Trauma/critical care | 19 (12.0) | 87 (12.6) | |
| Urology | 10 (6.3) | 34 (4.9) | |
| Vascular | 6 (3.8) | 34 (4.9) | |
| Resident (not in subspecialty track) | 12 (7.6) | 54 (7.8) | |
| Practice setting | <.001 | ||
| Academic | 123 (77.9) | 392 (56.7) | |
| Community/private practice | 13 (8.2) | 196 (28.3) | |
| Affiliated with academic hospital | 9 (5.7) | 72 (10.4) | |
| Military | 5 (3.2) | 12 (1.7) | |
| Other | 8 (5.1) | 20 (2.9) | |
| Region where child(ren) was/were conceived | .003 | ||
| Northeast | 67 (42.9) | 191 (27.8) | |
| Midwest | 30 (19.1) | 149 (21.7) | |
| South | 39 (24.8) | 208 (30.3) | |
| West | 21 (13.4) | 139 (20.2) | |
| Obstetric factors during pregnancy among female nonsurgeons and female surgeons (n = 850) | |||
| Maternal age at first live birth, median (IQR), ye | 31 (29-34) | 33 (31-36) | <.001 |
| Multiple gestatione | 4 (2.5) | 30 (4.3) | .30 |
| Maternal work hours >60 h/wk during first pregnancye | 14 (10.0) | 380 (56.6) | <.001 |
| Mother took time off for bed rest during first pregnancye,f | 30 (36.1) | 115 (22.1) | .005 |
| Questions for female surgeons only | NA | ||
| Reduced work hours for obstetric indication | NA | 111 (16.5) | |
| No. of overnight calls/mo during pregnancy | NA | ||
| 0 | NA | 66 (9.8) | |
| 2-4 | NA | 156 (23.3) | |
| 4-6 | NA | 201 (30.0) | |
| >6 | NA | 248 (37.0) | |
| Time in operating room/wk during last trimester, h | NA | NA | |
| 0-<8 | NA | 155 (23.1) | |
| 8-<12 | NA | 113 (16.8) | |
| 12-<16 | NA | 138 (20.6) | |
| ≥16 | NA | 265 (39.5) | |
Abbreviations: ART, assisted reproductive technology; IQR, interquartile range; NA, not applicable.
Male surgeons with female surgeon partners were excluded.
To better understand the impact of race and ethnicity on fertility and pregnancy and neonatal outcomes, participants were asked to report their race and ethnicity using categories defined by the US Office of Civil Rights,12 with options to select multiple categories or to self-report.
This category allowed participants to write their own responses. For male surgeons, this category included Iranian American, Middle Eastern, and South Asian. For female surgeons, this category included Arabic, South Asian, Iranian/Pakistani, and Middle Eastern.
ART included intrauterine insemination, in vitro fertilization, and embryo freezing.
Male surgeons reporting on behalf of their female nonsurgeon partners.
Among 83 nonsurgeons and 520 surgeon respondents who reported pregnancy complications.