Women over 35 who are planning to have a baby are often well aware of their biological clock.
And the study suggests that the influence of father’s age may play a more important role than previously thought if they choose to undergo IVF.
An analysis of nearly 19,000 IVF cycles has shown that for women younger than 35 or older than 40, the age of their male partner does not make a significant difference to their chances of conceiving.
But there was a “significant decline” in fertility in women aged 35 to 40 if the partner was 40 or older.
The results may help shape fertility recommendations for couples trying to conceive. The researchers said they would challenge traditional assumptions that a partner’s age should always be the main consideration.
Professor Geeta Nargond, Medical Director of Create Fertility, one of the authors of the study, told The Observer: “Obviously, it is very important not to ignore the age of the father when it comes to informing couples about fertility outcomes. It is clear that a woman’s age plays an important role. big role. But not all attention should be focused on her biological clock. We now know that for women in a certain age group, the age of the father is more important than previously thought when it comes to fertility rates.”
The study was based on an analysis of anonymous data from the UK Fertility Regulatory Authority and the Office of Human Fertilization and Embryology.
It found that the birth rate for women aged 35 to 40 dropped from 32.8% when the father was under 35 to 27.9% when the father was 40 to 44. When the male partner is over 55, the live birth rate was 25%.
Nargond, a consultant gynecologist at St George’s Hospital in Tooting, south London, said the study showed that the eggs of young females have the ability to “repair a higher frequency of DNA damage in the sperm of older men.” She also said there was a need to better understand the potential ability of both the egg and sperm to “repair the effects of the aging process.”
Source: Daily Mail