Age and Fertility Treatments

Q. I’ve read newspaper stories about women in their 50s and even 60s having babies with fertility treatments. But what do most fertility clinics consider to be an age cutoff for treatment?

A. First of all, women in their 50s and 60s having babies are without exception getting pregnant using donated eggs. Most fertility programs do have limits for the age at which egg donation is performed; some clinics have a cutoff as young as 45, other clinics don’t specify an age but evaluate each case individually. In our program we treat patients up to the age of 50. As for a woman using her own eggs, treatment for women over 45 is not going to be effective, and so in our program we discourage women over 45 from attempting fertility treatment using their own eggs.

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Everyone knows about maternity leave, but sometimes women need to take time off before a baby arrives. If you’re having fertility treatments or trying to adopt, here’s what you should know to get the time off you need. Whether—and when—to tell your boss that you’re undergoing fertility treatments or arranging an adoption depends a lot on your relationship with your supervisor. While most workplace experts caution against revealing too much personal information, how do you explain being late for work because of blood tests and ultrasounds, and then needing to get home for hormone injections? Or what if you must travel abroad to bring home a baby, and then want three months to bond with your adopted child?
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