Advanced maternal age relationship with pregnancy complications

Background: Due to increase in pregnancy complications in advanced age, this study was conducted to assess the relationship between advanced maternal age and the pregnancy complications.

Methods: Pregnant women who admitted to the Motazedi hospital in Kermanshah were included in this analytic–cross sectional study. The study group was 1178 cases that divided into two sub-groups; 35-40 year-old (914) and over 40 years old (264); and 2038 subjects of 20-25 year-old recruited as control group. Data such as maternal age, maternal and neonatal complications were extracted from hospital recorded profiles and analyzed using Chi-square, Fisher and ANOVA statistical tests.

Results: The results showed that in case groups (35-40 and over 40 year-old): eclampsia (3.7%, 2.27%), gestational diabetes (1.8%, 4.2%), placenta previa (1.1%, 1.5%), placenta abruption (1.8%, 4.2%) were higher than the control group (0.28%, 0.5%, 0.2% and 1%) respectively.

Fetal and neonatal outcomes such as intrauterine fetal death (9.6%, 14%), macrosomia (4%, 1.9%), Apgar score<7 in 5th minutes (3.1%,2.3%) and meconium passage (9.5%,2.3%), in study groups (35-40 and over 40 year-old) have been increased compare to  the control group (5.2%,0.1%,0.8% and 0.9%) respectively.

Conclusion: We concluded that with increasing maternal age, eclampsia, gestational diabetes, placenta previa, placental abruption, intrauterine fetal death, and meconium passage increased, however, preterm labor and prolonged pregnancy have been reduced.