IVF is less likely to work in men over the age of 50.
New research has found that the chances of IVF working in older men are weaker.
Researchers confirmed that “paternal age over 50 significantly affects the chance of achieving a live birth following ART. Paternal age does not independently affect the risk of miscarriage following ART.
“There should be a public health message for men not to delay fatherhood,” they stressed.
They studied approximately 5000 IVF cycles from couples who conceived from IVF with fresh, not frozen, embryos formed from their own eggs or sperm between December 2009 and August 2018.
The data came from the Centre for Reproductive and Genetic Health in London.
40% of cycles resulted in a live birth.
The study revealed that maternal and paternal age impacted the live birth rate and IVF success.
“A significantly lower proportion of men over 51 years met World Health Organization semen analysis criteria compared with men under 51 years of age.”
“Both maternal and paternal age were retained in the multivariate model and for all maternal age subgroups the probability of live birth decreased with paternal age over 50 years.”
They found that men over 50 had a 30% lower chance of having a baby compared to those under 35 who had a 50% higher chance.
The team said paternal age over 50 years was not an independent predictor of miscarriage.
The study revealed that semen quality deteriorates with increasing paternal age.
“There is conflicting evidence for any impact paternal age may have on the outcome of IVF/ICSI.”
It is understood that rates of clinical pregnancy also lowered when the paternal age was higher.
The researchers said more studies need to be conducted to analyse the impact a father’s age has on both pregnancy and the baby.
