Obstetrical and Perinatal Outcomes Are Not Associated with Advanced Paternal Age in IVF or ICSI Pregnancies with Autologous Oocytes

SIMPLE SUMMARY: In recent years, there has been an evident delay in parenthood increasing the average parental age at conception. Therefore, there has been a growing interest in the study of the association of age with reproductive outcomes. In this regard, it is well known that advanced maternal age is linked with adverse reproductive outcomes; however, the knowledge regarding the possible effect of advanced paternal age is limited. We studied advanced paternal age in in vitro fertilization and intracytoplasmic sperm injection with autologous sperm and autologous oocytes, dividing the population according to paternal age at conception: ≤30, 31–40 and >40. We found longer pregnancies for the fathers aged 31–40 years compared to those of ≤30 years. Our study supports the findings that advanced paternal age is not associated with clinically relevant obstetrical and perinatal outcomes, except for the duration of the pregnancy. This study provides clinicians and patients with more accurate information on the possible effect of paternal age, sending a hopeful message to couples with aged fathers, and addressing the need for future studies. ABSTRACT: Background: In recent years, there has been an evident delay in childbearing and concerns have been raised about whether this increase in age affects reproductive outcomes. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of paternal age on obstetrical and perinatal outcomes in couples undergoing in vitro fertilization or intracytoplasmic sperm injection using autologous sperm and oocytes. Methods: This retrospective study evaluated obstetrical and perinatal outcomes from 14,125 couples that were arbitrarily divided into three groups according to paternal age at conception: ≤30 (n = 1164), 31–40 (n = 11,668) and >40 (n = 1293). Statistics consisted of a descriptive analysis followed by univariate and multivariate models, using the youngest age group as a reference. Results: The study showed significantly longer pregnancies for the fathers aged 31–40 compared to ≤30 years. However, there were no significant differences for the type of delivery, gestational diabetes, anaemia, hypertension, delivery threat, premature rupture of membranes, preterm birth, very preterm birth, and the neonate’s sex, weight, low birth weight, very low birth weight, length, cranial perimeter, Apgar score and neonatal intensive care unit admission. Conclusion: Despite our promising results for older fathers, as paternal age was not associated with clinically relevant obstetrical and perinatal outcomes, future well-designed studies are necessary as it has been associated with other important disorders.