Background: Woman's age is an independent factor determining the success of assisted reproductive technology treatment. This study presents the age-specific success rate of first autologous fresh treatment in Australia during 2002-2005.
Methods: This is a retrospective population-based study of 36,412 initiated first autologous fresh cycles conducted in Australian clinics during 2002-2005. Pregnancy and live delivery rates per initiated cycle were determined for each age.
Results: The overall live delivery rate per initiated cycle was 20.4% with the highest success rate in women aged between 22 and 36 years. Male factor only infertility had a higher live delivery rate (22.0%) than female factor only infertility (19.2%). Advancing woman's age was associated with a decline in success rate. For women > or = 30 years, each additional 1 year in age was associated with an 11% (99% CI: 10-12%) reduction in the chance of achieving pregnancy and a 13% (99% CI: 12-14%) reduction in the chance of a live delivery. If women aged 35 years or older would have had their first autologous fresh treatment 1 year earlier, 15% extra live deliveries would be expected.
Conclusions: This study suggested that women aged 35 years or older should be encouraged to seek early fertility assessment and treatment where clinically indicated.