Researchers from Paris studied more than 12,000 couples undergoing fertility treatments and the results revealed that pregnancy rates drop and miscarriages increase when the father is older than 40. The findings are being presented Monday at the 24th annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Barcelona, Spain.
A study of more than 12,000 couples undergoing fertility treatments has found that pregnancy rates drop and miscarriages increase when the father is older than 40. The findings are being presented today at the 24th annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Barcelona, Spain.
Researcher Stephanie Belloc of the Eylau Centre for Assisted Reproduction in Paris and colleagues suggest that this information should be considered by both doctors and patients in assisted reproduction programs. It is the first ever study to show that apart from women's age, men's age also has a strong effect on reproductive outcomes.
The reason for the decline in sperm quality lies in the link between a man's age and DNA decay in sperm that causes it to fragment. The researchers said that many of the sperm samples obtained from men over 40 had defects that could cause miscarriage.
For the couples above 40 years of age, fertility experts should suggest new advanced techniques like in vitro fertilization (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) -- a technique that places sperm directly into an egg, which have good success rates.
