Zarafshan Shiraz, New Delhi
While there is no ideal age for having a baby, many women are keen to postpone their pregnancy journey until they have achieved certain career milestones and financial stability. Due to this, many women are also getting married later, which again means the age at which they have a baby is delayed.
Pregnancy after 35 years automatically puts a woman in the “Advanced Maternal Age” (AMA) category. In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Sangeeta Rodeo, Consultant-Gynecology and Obstetrics at Fortis Hospital in Mulund, shared, “While this label might be intimating it is essential to understand that successful pregnancy after 35 years is common, albeit with a few risks. With time, the chances of having a successful pregnancy can reduce as the egg reserve and its quality diminishes, along with hormonal changes. ”
According to her, some maternal and foetal risks that women in the AMA category might experience include the following –
- Infertility: As a woman approaches menopause, getting pregnant might get longer and more challenging. Why? Because a woman begins her life with a set number of eggs, these reduce with time. Eggs may also be of lesser quality as a woman ages, making them harder to fertilise/implant.
- Miscarriage: As the egg quality decreases, the risk of miscarriage increases. In addition, pregnancy loss can increase if the woman has existing comorbidities like high blood pressure or Diabetes. Stillbirth is another possibility, so all prenatal appointments must be maintained, especially if the woman belongs to the AMA category.
- Chromosome issues: Older women are at a higher risk of encountering chromosome issues in their unborn child. For example, the risk of having a child with Down Syndrome is around 1 in 365 for women aged 35 years. At age 45, this risk increases to 1 in 40 years.
- Gestational Diabetes and high blood pressure: A diabetic pregnant woman is at risk of having a baby that grows large while still inside the womb. In such a case, there is a high risk of injury at birth or having a stillborn baby. Additionally, high blood pressure (for the mom) can cause Preeclampsia and other complications (for the baby).
Dr Sangeeta Rodeo highlighted, “Other complications include preterm labour, chromosomal abnormalities for the mother and intrauterine growth restrictions, prematurity, increased admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), and Autism Spectrum Disorders in the baby. Further, women of advanced maternal age are likely to undergo induced labour and elective caesarean delivery. While the maternal age of the mother does matter when it comes to fertility, this is a grey area and can vary for every couple.”
She concluded, “It is equally important to remember that infertility and pregnancy complications can happen at any age and it is possible to have a healthy pregnancy and delivery even if a woman belongs to an advanced age category. Most importantly, a couple can look at a variety of other options for growing their family, like IVF, egg freezing and adoption. It is best to consult a Gynaecologist or specialist if you are having trouble conceiving or looking for options beyond natural conception.”
