Research gaps
The current literature presents several limitations on this topic. The
terminology used over the past ten years to define sexual minority
individuals has been quite heterogeneous and inconsistent limiting the
ability to perform adequate data synthesis to assess the state of the
science, identify gaps or suggest adequate clinical
recommendations.4 Lack of consistent terminology also
affects the possibility of performing national population studies. Only
in 2020, the United States Census Bureau attempted to remedy the lack of
data on sexual minority individuals, by including responses from the
lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer community and persons in a
same-sex relationship.12 Additional limitations are
that previous studies have focused more on sexual behaviors and risk of
pregnancy rather than health, access to care, or pregnancy outcomes in
this population.5 Other factors to be considered are
the paucity of prospective studies on this research topic, and
difficulty in recruiting sexual minority patients due to their limited
access to health care and academic centers, as well as possible stigma
that these individuals experience.4 All of these
limitations affect the information and knowledge available to health
care providers, advocates, policymakers, and researchers. For the
healthcare provider, this translates into limited training. In 2018,
less than half of board-certified American obstetricians-gynecologists
reported having any training with regards to care for sexual minority
patients.10