Over 40: Will age affect my pregnancy?
I am 42 years old and eight-weeks-pregnant with my fifth child. Although I am thrilled to be pregnant, I am concerned about my age. Should my pregnancy be managed differently?
Having said that, there are still some risks during pregnancy that increase with age. The most obvious is the increase in risk of chromosome problems associated with Downs syndrome. At your age, the risk of a chromosome problem is 1 in 42. This is still a low risk (79 in 80 chances that the baby won't have a chromosome problem) but substantially increased from when you were younger. There are a number of special tests available to check the foetus for any abnormalities. Blood tests such as alpha fetoprotein (AFP) or the triple test, or invasive techniques such as amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling (CVS). None of these tests are compulsory but some carry risks. Discuss your options with your doctor and midwife at your antenatal clinic.
Other risks depend on your health. Some studies have indicated an increased risk for growth problems, pre-term labour, pre-eclampsia, high blood pressure, and diabetes. It is hard to work out the effects of age alone from the increased chances of those diseases becoming evident as we go through life, which would then make the pregnancy higher risk just on the basis of the disease you have. So, if you are in good health, the risks appear to be minimally higher than normal. You will be watched a little more closely for signs of any problems, but essentially you will have normal care during your pregnancy unless something showed up on your routine visits.
You will find that you may be more tired than when you were 20, that you have more aches and pains, and there will probably be days when you wonder why you did this. But then what else is new? There is every chance that you will be the mature stable mother every child needs.
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