Fertility Assessment & Planning for Delayed Childbearing at Advanced Age

Question
Hello
We want twins or at least one child within the first year of our marriage, because our marriage is too late and we cannot wait for years for child. What should we do? What tests are needed to know that how much power is in me (semen etc.) and she (egg, ovary etc.) to produce child? My age is 50 and her age is 40, we both are virgins, we never performed sexual intercourse with any person in our lives. We are planning to marry next month.
Thank you,
Best regards,
Adam.


Answer
Hello Adam from Pakistan,

Your major problem is going to be the age of your fiance's eggs, in terms of your ability to achieve pregnancy.  I would recommend that you see a fertility specialist that does IVF for a consultation.  Usually, we will recommend that any woman 37 years old or older undergo IVF as the treatment of choice.  I know that this seems like a radical way to go, but age is a significant factor.  For example, a woman under 30 years old has an 85% chance of natural pregnancy per year of trying.  A woman 40 years old has a 10% chance of natural pregnancy per year of trying.  So there are pregnancies, but they are very low, and as time passes, this statistic gets lower and lower.  With IVF, in the U.S., pregnancy rates in this age group are about 40-50% per IVF attempt (in my clinic in 2009 the PR is 68% at 40 years old).  In addition, it would only take 2-3 attempts to get pregnant so it is the fastest way to have a child.  Finally, there is a higher twin pregnancy rate.

I hope that answers your question.

Sincerely,

Edward J. Ramirez, M.D., FACOG
Executive Medical Director
The Fertility and Gynecology Center
Monterey Bay IVF Program
www.montereybayivf.com

Monterey, California, U.S.A.

for additional information check out my blog at http://womenshealthandfertility.blogspot.com check me out on facebook and twitter with me at @montereybayivf