Pregnancy in the older woman is a well-known risk factor for perinatal morbidity and mortality.
Objective: To evaluate perinatal and infant morbidity and mortality in women 50 or more years old.
Methods: A retrospective population based study (1990-2004) evaluating spontaneously pregnant Chilean women more than 50 years old (217 live or stillbirths) compared to women 20-34 years old (2,817,742 neonates, control group). The comparison was performed using Chi Square with Yates's correction or exact Fisher test as appropriate. The risk analysis was performed by odds ratio (OR) and confidence interval of 95% (CI 95%).
Results: Women over 50 had a significantly greater risk of fetal (OR: 3.7; CI 95%: 1.2-10.5), neonatal (OR: 10.4; CI 95%: 5.7-18.7), post-neonatal (OR: 9.5; CI 95%: 4.6-19.1) and infant death (OR: 10.5; CI 95%: 6.6-16.7). There were no differences between groups in the incidences of low and very low birth weight.
Conclusion: Pregnancy over 50 years of age entails a very high risk of fetal, neonatal and early childhood death. Unprotected sexual life for these women should be considered only after evaluation of their potential fertility.