More options for middle age women who want to give birth; More risks too

Though still a relatively small portion of over all births (just 5% in California), the number of women 40-44 who are giving birth has grown rapidly in the past decade (up 300% in California). The reasons for middle aged pregnancies are many including scientific advancements (particularly egg donation), more social acceptance of the practice, and greater workplace opportunities for women leading to delays in the decision to have children.

Scientific advancements have been necessary because women begin to have fertility problems about 10 to 15 years before they experience menopause. The average age of menopause is 50 to 52 but can be many years before or after this depending on the individual.

In vitro fertilization is not cheap nor is it guaranteed to be successful.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the average chance for a 40-year-old woman undergoing assisted reproductive therapy to become pregnant using her own eggs was 23%, and to successfully carry the pregnancy through to birth, about 16%. Both rates dropped steadily with each one-year increase in age. Using donor eggs, however, raises the chances for a successful live birth to 51% for women over 40, according to the CDC.

Not everyone is excited about the trend. Dr. Alan R. Fleischman, medical director for the March of Dimes, said:

"All of the complications of pregnancy -- high blood pressure, preeclampsia [a rapidly progressing hypertension that affects mother and fetus], fetal death, prematurity, low birth weight -- occur at higher rates in older women than in younger women. That's true with or without assisted reproductive technologies."

Dr. Richard Paulson, chief of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at USC's Keck School of Medicine and a pioneer of egg donation, said:

"...the biological clock is a reality."

For those couples (and even single women) who desire children but do not want to pursue in vitro, adoption remains a very viable option.

Story source and quotes: Los Angeles Times