Nowadays it is not uncommon to have a baby after the age of 35. Women in their 40s and even 50s are also becoming pregnant more frequently. It is true that a woman's age and our "biological clock" have a strong influence on the chances of natural conception. However, thanks to reproductive technologies, births are becoming possible later and later in life.

Are there advantages to a late pregnancy?
This is a matter of opinion. Postponing childbirth gives a woman the opportunity to advance her career, settle down, travel and get to know herself better before starting a family. It is also possible that the woman will only find a suitable partner later in life. It is therefore possible that the desire to have children develops later. In their 40s, women also have more maturity, life experience, financial stability and flexibility to make caring for children easier. However, there are some risk factors to consider, especially from a medical point of view.

Wha does late pregnancy mean?
Every woman is born with all her eggs for life. After the onset of menstruation, a mature egg that could be fertilised is normally released every month. This is known as ovulation. The number of available eggs therefore automatically decreases over the years, and disproportionately so with increasing age. It is estimated that the average woman has only 1,000 eggs left by the age of 51. That's a drastic drop from 500,000 during puberty and 25,000 in the mid-30s. In addition, the quality of the eggs also decreases with age, which can make conception more difficult or increase the risk of chromosomal abnormalities. These in turn can lead to early pregnancy loss.

What are the medical risks of late pregnancy and how can they be monitored?
Conception therefore becomes more difficult with increasing age and pregnancy is automatically considered risky. From the age of 38, women are classified as "high-risk pregnant women" from a medical point of view due to the following risks:
Due to more frequent chromosomal abnormalities, the miscarriage rate is higher, as is the risk of having a child with a chromosomal abnormality. The probability of chromosomal disorders in the child increases significantly with the age of the mother or both parents. The most common and best-known genetic defect, which is influenced by the mother's age, is trisomy 21, known as Down's syndrome. Nowadays, ultrasound and other screening tests, such as the non-invasive prenatal test, can be used to assess the risk of such disorders in early pregnancy. Further prenatal diagnostic examinations, e.g. a chorionic villus sampling, can then clearly identify these. The women are therefore closely monitored medically. In this case, the health insurance company will also cover the costs of any ultrasound examinations as well as prenatal diagnostics, if desired.

The risk of pregnancy complications is also increased in late pregnancies. For example, gestational diabetes, pregnancy-related high blood pressure, haemorrhaging or a low-lying placenta (placenta praevia) are more common than in younger women. Every check-up includes a blood pressure measurement and urine laboratory test to screen for pregnancy-induced high blood pressure (pre-eclampsia). Your gynaecologist will advise you to look out for certain symptoms. Patients are instructed to consult a doctor immediately if they have a headache that cannot be treated by taking magnesium and paracetamol, especially if they also experience vision problems, flickering eyes, nausea and vomiting, and pain in the upper right abdomen. The patient should also pay attention to rapid weight gain. This could indicate pronounced water retention. If an elevated blood pressure is diagnosed during the check-up, the patient is given a blood pressure monitor to use at home and, if necessary, pregnancy-compatible therapy.

As a screening test, all pregnant women between the 24th and 28th week of pregnancy undergo a sugar load test (also known as an oral glucose tolerance test or OGTT). This is used to recognise patients with gestational diabetes in good time. If such a problem is diagnosed, the first step is to try to keep blood sugar levels within the normal range with diet and exercise. If this is not successful, insulin is used to avoid further risks for the unborn child.

It should also be noted that as women get older, chronic diseases such as diabetes or cardiovascular complaints occur more frequently, even independently of pregnancy. It is therefore important that any existing medication is switched to a pregnancy-compatible variant before conception. For example, if the woman suffers from type 2 diabetes and is taking oral antidiabetics (metformin) for treatment, she should be switched to insulin before or immediately after pregnancy is detected.

If you have any questions about pregnancy, please do not hesitate to contact us. For us, it doesn't matter whether a pregnant woman is 20 or 45 years old. We will provide you with comprehensive care in accordance with the latest guidelines and the highest medical standards. If you are unsure during pregnancy or suspect that you are suffering from one of the above-mentioned risk factors or diseases, you can of course come to us for a check-up and advice at any time. It is better to have too much than too little.