Elizabeth Adeney, a 66-year old woman, is now 8-months pregnant after undergoing infertility treatment in Ukraine. She is expected to be one of the oldest new mothers in the world, joining the growing list of women conceiving at an advanced age using assisted reproductive technologies.
Prior to Elizabeth Adeney, Rajo Devi, who claimed to be about 70 years old, gave birth in November 2008 to her first child, again following infertility treatment in India. In 2006, Carmela Bousada of Spain became what was believed to be the oldest new mother when she delivered twin boys at age 66. Before that, Romanian citizen Adriana Iliescu gave birth to a baby girl in January 2005, also at 66. Bousada was 130 days older than Iliescu when she gave birth.
These births, achieved through the use of donor eggs and in vitro fertilization raised concerns about the ethical implications of infertility treatment in women at advanced age, particularly with regard to maternal complications and the social issues related to the care of the children as they grow up. It is well established that advanced maternal age is associated with gestational diabetes and pregnancy induced hypertension, which, in turn, may result in preterm birth and associated adverse outcomes. Social implications of pregnancies that occur at such an advanced age are yet to be studied.
Currently, many programs in the United States use an age limit of 50 for infertility treatment based on the median age of menopause. However, these arbitrary age limits also bring additional discussions on patients’ autonomy. Therefore, the need remains for a multi-disciplinary discussion of regulatory strategies for assisted reproduction taking into account the medical, social, financial, and ethical aspects.
Prior to Elizabeth Adeney, Rajo Devi, who claimed to be about 70 years old, gave birth in November 2008 to her first child, again following infertility treatment in India. In 2006, Carmela Bousada of Spain became what was believed to be the oldest new mother when she delivered twin boys at age 66. Before that, Romanian citizen Adriana Iliescu gave birth to a baby girl in January 2005, also at 66. Bousada was 130 days older than Iliescu when she gave birth.
These births, achieved through the use of donor eggs and in vitro fertilization raised concerns about the ethical implications of infertility treatment in women at advanced age, particularly with regard to maternal complications and the social issues related to the care of the children as they grow up. It is well established that advanced maternal age is associated with gestational diabetes and pregnancy induced hypertension, which, in turn, may result in preterm birth and associated adverse outcomes. Social implications of pregnancies that occur at such an advanced age are yet to be studied.
Currently, many programs in the United States use an age limit of 50 for infertility treatment based on the median age of menopause. However, these arbitrary age limits also bring additional discussions on patients’ autonomy. Therefore, the need remains for a multi-disciplinary discussion of regulatory strategies for assisted reproduction taking into account the medical, social, financial, and ethical aspects.
