Prevention of Infertility Source Document the Impact of Age on Female Fertility Background

BACKGROUND Over the past several decades, demographic and socioeconomic trends have resulted in an increase in the absolute number of women seeking pregnancy in their late 30’s and early to mid40’s. In addition, a significant number of women in this age group are seeking evaluation and treatment for infertility. Although there is a very well demonstrated decline in female fertility as a function of age, this phenomenon has typically has been under-recognized not only by the general population, but also by many health care providers. This is probably related to the fact that in previous decades women generally had completed childbearing by the late 30’s and in fact many of the pregnancies that occurred in the later reproductive years were unplanned. An increased awareness of the effects of aging on fertility for patients and health care providers is critical to the prevention of age-related infertility.