Until what age am I still looking for pregnancy?

Years ago, the lower access to technology, the lower frequency of difficulties in having children, the different role of women in society and the greater predominance of clearer moral guidelines in a predominantly Catholic society, meant that these questions were not answered. pose. Today our society has changed and is opening up to the resources offered by biomedical technology with more inclusive and open perspectives; It encompasses individuals with ideological diversity and above all with the freedom to exercise their autonomy, making decision-making in medical situations that are not reduced to the merely technical, more complex. One of these cases is the age limit to perform fertility treatments with donated eggs, since as we mentioned, this resource prolongs the chances of achieving pregnancies independently of age.

Despite the existence of clear medical considerations and others that touch on the ethical, psychological and social fields, it is not possible to determine a precise age limit to carry them out.

From a medical point of view, it is very important to state that the risks of a pregnancy are much greater the older the woman is, causing in some cases during its course, high blood pressure, sugar problems, prolonged medical disabilities, hospitalizations, abortions, deliveries before term with newborns exposed to many complications. This last situation becomes more frequent given the greater presentation of multiple pregnancies secondary to in vitro fertilization treatments.

On the other hand, the egg donation resource, in addition to offering very good pregnancy options, allows reducing the risks inherent to the quality of the eggs in older women, making them equivalent to those risks of donor women under 30 years of age. However, the possible complications on the health of the woman who becomes pregnant persist, although in most cases without being so high as to contraindicate it; Current resources allow a close monitoring of pregnancies to detect complications early and manage them, providing timely assistance that seeks to achieve the best results, but without ruling out unfavorable outcomes.

When the medical literature related to egg donation treatments is reviewed, according to risk weighting, it is not easy to identify an age limit after which it is not prudent to perform them; The emphasis on the risks described is recognized and proposals are identified that suggest an arbitrary age limit of 45 years, although there are also isolated reports of women with treatments even over 50 years.

According to all the above and as it happens in other areas of health, the feeling is intensified that medical decisions, understood only as technical and scientific, are not enough in such a special human relationship, such as that of doctor and patient. A woman who comes to request a treatment of this nature, does so motivated by fundamental reasons for her and for her environment; on the other hand, it is assumed that the doctor bases his decisions on scientific evidence that allows them to be considered safe activities in their technical aspect, but it is also necessary that his judgment be prudent in ethical and moral terms.

At no time can the role of the doctor be reduced to that of a simple service provider, but rather recognize him as the human being who puts his knowledge into practice on his fellow human beings, making use of his moral principles and the codes of ethics implicit in his profession. maintaining respect for his patient as an individual holder of rights and possessor in turn of moral principles in accordance with his cultural and social environment.

Thus seen, the practice of medicine can become a dialogue of equal individuals playing different roles, who interact and by mutual agreement reach determinations that do not adversely affect the patient in his individuality, or his collective environment.

In the present case, considering pregnancies in older women, invites us to pause not only on medical aspects exposed that are fundamental, but also on questions about the quality and quantity of life that mothers can share with their children and Regarding government policies, if a defined age limit should be indicated given the cost that such pregnancies cause to health systems.

Despite not having infallible answers, the most important thing is to acknowledge the questions and invite an interdisciplinary dialogue in which the wealth of contributions from different perspectives help us to arrive at reasonable suggestions.

In the absence of a single and definitive answer, the recommendation is to guide patients respecting their individual rights, providing them with complete and clear information, both about the benefits of technological resources and the risks that they could entail.

Cecilia Hernandez Leal
Gynecologist
Reproductive Medicine Specialist
Bioethics Specialist

Vía:the viewer