An increasing number of couples are seeking fertility treatments due to infertility challenges. This trend is driving up healthcare costs, reveals research by IVF specialist Dr. Aisha de Graaff from Maastricht University Medical Center+.
Dr. de Graaff's analysis shows a direct link between the rising average age at first birth in the general population and among women facing fertility problems. For each year the mean age at first birth increased population-wide, the average age of women seeking treatment rose by the same margin (1.1 years).
Critical threshold
The share of women over the critical age of 35 at their first clinic visit surged from 8% in 1985 to 31% in 2008.
Taking age 25 as the baseline, the odds of a couple needing medical help to conceive rise 1.5-fold by age 30, 2.5-fold by 35, and dramatically 6.5-fold by 40.
These findings are published in the journal Fertility and Sterility.
