A pregnancy characterized by advanced maternal age occurs when the birthing individual is over the age of 35. Pregnant women over the age of 35 are more likely to experience difficulties such as miscarriage, congenital abnormalities, or high blood pressure. Screening tests can aid in the detection of specific congenital diseases.
Advanced maternal age is a medical phrase that refers to pregnant women over the age of 35. Pregnancies with a birth parent aged 35 or older are more likely to develop difficulties. Some of these risks include increased miscarriage rates, genetic diseases, and specific pregnancy complications such as high blood pressure or gestational diabetes.
Advanced maternal age pregnancy is treated similarly to a conventional pregnancy. Your healthcare professional may recommend prenatal testing and more frequent monitoring. Being aware of your pregnancy symptoms and being healthy becomes much more crucial as you reach the age of 35, as your chance of chronic disorders increases.
Despite these dangers, it is possible to have safe pregnancies and kids after the age of 35.
If you will be 35 or older when your due date arrives, you are considered to be of advanced maternal age.
Is advanced maternal age equivalent to geriatric pregnancy?
Yes, they are the same. Geriatric pregnancy is an antiquated word, and most healthcare experts prefer the term advanced maternal age.
Is it harder to conceive if you're over 35?
Healthcare practitioners have determined that the most significant drop in fertility occurs in the mid-to-late 30s. Fertility declines mean that the quality and number of eggs in your ovaries diminish. This does not rule out the possibility of becoming pregnant after the age of 35. It means that from the age of 35, fertility begins to fall more rapidly and the likelihood of difficulties increases dramatically.
You are born with a predetermined number of eggs. Every menstrual cycle, you ovulate and release an egg. As you become older, you have fewer eggs. The eggs you do have are more likely to have chromosomal abnormalities, which can lead to genetic problems. A genetic disorder is a condition that occurs at birth.
All pregnancies come with risks; however, you or your baby are at increased risk for the following conditions when you are of advanced maternal age:
Gestational diabetes.
Premature birth or low birth weight.
Down syndrome or other genetic disorders.
Stillbirth.
Why are there more issues when you're over 35 and pregnant?
Egg quality declines as mother age increases. This means that as you get older, your egg quality decreases. "Older" eggs are more prone to produce chromosomal abnormalities. Healthcare providers screen for several of these chromosomal defects throughout the first trimester.
Another reason there are greater issues beyond 35 is that the likelihood of having most chronic medical disorders increases as you become older. Your body just responds differently to certain conditions as you age. These chronic medical disorders have the potential to interfere with pregnancy and delivery. For example, a non-pregnant person is more likely to develop high blood pressure at 35 than at 25.
Starting a family is a personal choice, and many people prefer to wait until later in life to have children. One of the advantages of having a baby later in life is that it provides additional life experience and financial stability. Couples are marrying later than in previous decades. Assisted reproductive technologies (such as in vitro fertilization, or IVF) are becoming more successful. This means that people may postpone beginning or expanding their families. According to studies, the number of people having their first baby in their late 30s is increasing year after year.
Genetic screening tests are advised for all pregnancies, but they are especially relevant in cases of advanced maternal age. These noninvasive exams are optional and can help determine whether your kid is at high risk for certain congenital disorders. The majority of testing involves blood tests or ultrasounds. These tests are screens, which means they can detect the presence of a genetic problem.
If an issue is identified during a screening test, invasive genetic testing can be performed. These procedures include chronic villus sampling (CVS) and amniocentesis. CVS employs placental cells to diagnose a genetic disease. Amniocentesis is a procedure that includes inserting a needle into your abdomen to retrieve amniotic fluid from within the uterus. This fluid can be used to diagnose some genetic disorders.
Do doctors treat advanced maternal age pregnancies differently?
Not really. Healthcare providers rarely treat you differently simply because you are of advanced maternal age. However, if genetic screening tests show that your baby has a congenital condition, your doctor may recommend you to a maternal-fetal medicine specialist. This person specializes in high-risk pregnancies.
Other times, you may have more frequent prenatal appointments with your regular practitioner or undergo testing sooner. For example, an early glucose screening test (to look for signs of gestational diabetes), additional ultrasounds, or fetal heart rate monitoring to verify your baby's health. If you have other risk factors for preeclampsia, your doctor may prescribe that you take a baby aspirin every day for the majority of your pregnancy to reduce your chances of having this disease.
Your prenatal care becomes more crucial as you age because your chance of certain illnesses rises. As a result, it is more crucial than ever to attend all visits or screenings, eat a nutritious diet, and stay at a healthy weight during your pregnancy.
You can take steps to increase your chances of having a healthy baby.
Some things you can do if you are older than 35 and pregnant are:
Attend all of your prenatal appointments and screenings.
Gain a healthy amount of weight during pregnancy.
Manage any preexisting or new pregnancy conditions.
Reduce your stress levels and get enough sleep.
Exercise regularly and eat a healthy diet.
A note from Dr Elsa De Menezes
The majority of pregnancies above the age of 35 are healthy and successful. However, it's critical to understand the potential difficulties of advanced-age pregnancies. If you are over 35, talk to your healthcare practitioner about what genetic screening tests they recommend and what you may do to be healthy. In most circumstances, age during pregnancy is merely a number. You are more likely to have a healthy baby if you maintain a healthy weight, address any existing issues, and listen to your healthcare professional.
