IVF Success Rates By Age In 2024

1. What is IVF?
2. Why resort to IVF?
3. IVF success rates by age
4. IVF success rate using fresh and frozen embryos
5. How many IVF cycles will I need?
6. What influences IVF success rates?
7. How to increase your chances of IVF success
8. When to see a doctor

Basically, prospective parents rely on reviews from accomplished parents, on cases described in blogs and social networks of clinics, and on statistics provided by doctors during preliminary consultations.

There is no single IVF success rate that can be extrapolated to each individual case. However, there is a clear connection that reflects the dynamics of the IVF success rate by age: the results of a large-scale study in 2022 showed that clinical pregnancy as a result of IVF in women under 30 years of age occurred in 69.4% of cases, at the age of 40-43 years this figure decreased to 9.4%. However, age is not the only factor influencing the success rate of IVF. Let us consider the main indicators of IVF success in the form of a live birth in more detail.

What is IVF?

Why resort to IVF?

The main reason is the high success rate of IVF as a way to combat infertility. The method is universally effective for female and male infertility and is available not only for married couples, but also for people living in a partnership, as well as for same-sex couples.

In vitro fertilization is a safe and reliable method of expanding a family for people who are carriers of severe genetic diseases that can be inherited. With the help of preimplantation genetic screening (PGS), you can select a healthy embryo and thereby further increase the percentage of successful IVF.

The method is also used by those people who have chosen “delayed parenthood” and frozen their genetic materials (eggs, sperm, embryos).

IVF success rates by age

IVF success rates by age demonstrate a direct relationship between a woman’s age and the percentage of successful completion of the reproductive program with the birth of a child. According to 2021 data from the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART), IVF success rates by age were as follows:

• up to 35 years old ― 44.5%;
• 35-37 years old ― 32.4%;
• 38-40 years old ― 20.2%;
• 41-42 years old ― 9.6%;
• over 42 years old ― 2.9%.

IVF success rates in older reproductive ages, when using donor oocytes, it is usually higher than when using your own ones. Advanced reproductive age is also an additional risk factor for both mother and child.

IVF success rate using fresh and frozen embryos

According to the national SART report for 2021, the IVF success rate for the transfer of fresh donor oocytes, the live birth rate is 41.4%, and for the transfer of frozen eggs is 39.1%.

In addition, pronounced individual differences were found when using fresh and frozen embryos: for some women, reproductive programs were more successful when transferring fresh embryos, while for others, pregnancy was more successfully achieved with cryotransfer.

How many IVF cycles will I need?

The number of IVF cycles required for a live birth varies greatly from person to person. However, here too there is a dependence of the IVF success rate on age. The oocyte reserve in women under 35 may be sufficient to obtain a large number of mature eggs, which will allow the creation of a good quality embryo in the first cycle.

Women of advanced reproductive age or who have a small supply of eggs often require more than one cycle. There is no limit on the number of oocyte punctures, however, after 6 cycles, the productivity of the procedure is greatly reduced. This may make it necessary to consider the possibility of involving a surrogate mother and oocyte donor in the reproductive program.

The success rate for IVF in older reproductive age in the case of using previously frozen embryos or genetic materials depends on many factors (age, health, hormonal status and many others).

What influences IVF success rates?

How to increase your chances of IVF success

In general, all that the intended mother can do to increase the chances of IVF success is to strictly follow all the recommendations of the attending physician and lead a healthy lifestyle. Some studies have shown that a Mediterranean diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans and legumes, while limiting sugar, sodium and processed foods, can positively affect the likelihood of IVF success.

Also, a significant contribution to the success of IVF on the part of the woman will be giving up bad habits, maintaining normal body weight and minimizing stress during the reproductive program and the IVF procedure itself.

When to see a doctor

As noted earlier, you should immediately visit a reproductive endocrinologist if, after 12 months (if the woman is under 35 years of age) or 6 months (if the woman is 35 or older) of sexual activity without contraception, pregnancy has not been achieved. If pregnancies have occurred, but ended in miscarriage, this is a reason to consult a doctor immediately, without waiting for 6 or 12 months.

Single men and women who want to become parents, same-sex couples and people who know that they are at risk of having a child with a serious genetic disease should also contact a reproductive specialist.

In general, you should seek the advice of a certified specialist if you have any concerns about reproduction. If there is no problem, you can calmly work towards achieving pregnancy; if there is a problem, early treatment can either solve them or increase the chances of successful IVF if conceiving naturally is impossible for you for some reason.

Another reliable way to increase the chances of successful IVF is to choose a good clinic with experienced specialists and a large number of real reviews from people who became happy parents thanks to the clinic.