Geriatric pregnancy is a rarely used term for having a baby when you're 35 or older. Rest assured, most healthy women who get pregnant after age 35 and even into their 40s have healthy babies.
After age 35, there's a higher risk of pregnancy-related complications that might lead to a C-section delivery. The risk of chromosomal conditions is higher. Babies born to older mothers have a higher risk of certain chromosomal conditions, such as Down syndrome. The risk of pregnancy loss is higher.
So as you get older, you have fewer and fewer eggs, and the eggs you have aren't easily fertilized by a man's sperm. All this makes it harder for you to get pregnant. If you're older than 35 and have been trying for 6 months to get pregnant, tell your health care provider.
For example, a woman at 30 often has around 100,000-150,000 eggs in reserve. By 35, that number is likely around 80,000. Late into the thirties, that number could be 25,000, 10,000, or fewer.
One study found that for couples having regular unprotected sex: around 7 out of 10 women aged 30 will conceive within one year. around 6 out of 10 women aged 35 will conceive within one year. around 4 out of 10 women aged 40 will conceive within one year.
Not too late at all, though you do need to get on with it. Most of my friends had their first at around 35. Not at all! I had my first at 36 and second at 39.
Down syndrome occurs in people of all races and economic levels. The risk increases with the mother's age (1 in 1250 for a 25 year old mother to 1 in 1000 at age 31, 1 in 400 at age 35, and about 1 in 100 at age 40). However, 80% of babies with Down syndrome are born to women under age 35 years.
A pregnancy that begins after age 35 is classified as a high-risk pregnancy because the risk of complications is higher, not inevitable. Many of the problems that occur with pregnancies after age 35 are related to health conditions that occur more often as you age.
Current supplementation policies designed to prevent neural tube defects may incidentally prevent Down's syndrome, provided a sufficiently high dose of folic acid is used.
Definition of geriatric pregnancy
We define advanced maternal age (formerly geriatric pregnancy) as those who are 35 years or older at their estimated delivery date.
While delivering at age 35 and older is officially considered “advanced maternal age,” Dr. Kalish notes that in reality, there's no “magic number” for being at-risk for complications. “A healthy 38-year-old could have an easier pregnancy than a 20-year-old who has multiple medical issues,” Dr.
The risks of miscarriage and stillbirth are higher in people who are older than 35. Also, multiple pregnancy is more common when you are older. As the ovaries age, they are more likely to release more than one egg each month. Some fertility treatments also increase the chance of a multiple pregnancy.
There is enough evidence to show that the chances of developing dangerous conditions that can impact the pregnant parent and fetus/newborn increase after age 35 (1). Some chronic conditions, like diabetes and hypertension, are more common with age.
Pregnancy after 35 also has many benefits, such as greater financial and emotional stability, previous experience with childbirth and parenting, or access to more peers who have had children and could provide support.
You are increasingly at risk for infertility issues, multiples, premature delivery, a chromosomal abnormality, a miscarriage or stillbirth, and abnormal fetal growth. And your chances of needing a C-section go up.
Late preterm babies (babies who are born between 34 and 37 weeks of gestation) are less mature and developed than full-term babies. Hence, babies born at 35 weeks are at a higher risk of developing complications than full-term babies. One of the best ways to prevent preterm birth is with high-quality prenatal care.
Peak male fertility is around 25-29 years old. Sperm quality begins to decline at 30. At 45, men begin to experience a significant decrease in semen volume. Older men can also take longer to conceive a child.
Pregnant women over the age of 35 and having their first baby have been termed as being advanced maternal age (AMA) or older mothers, or they are being referred to as an elderly primigravida or elderly primipara.
If you're under 35 and in good health, it's perfectly natural for it to take up to a year. It can take longer if you are older, however; for women aged 38, 67% who have regular unprotected sexual intercourse will only get pregnant after two years of trying2.
Egg quality and quantity also decline in a woman's 30s and 40s. While the total number of eggs cannot be increased, research has shown that egg quality can be improved. Supplements containing Myo-inositol, folic acid and melatonin have been shown to help improve egg quality and ovarian function.
By 30, a woman's fertility starts to decline, and after 35 the rate accelerates. Specifically, before 30, women have an 85 percent chance of conceiving within a year; at 30, those odds drop to 75 percent; and at 35 the chance drops to 66 percent, research has found.