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I am as worried as you and me and my H going through exactly the same thing, we want a health baby. I am 37 and 8 weeks pregnant and I have gone through the tests on Friday with my consultant this is what I know. I also am aware the tests vary from country and type of hospital and care chosen by the parents. I have had two scans date to check heartbeat and stability of the pregnancy i.e. Look at chances of miscarriage, which my ob now thinks is less than 5%. Now I have to wait three weeks when I will have another growth scan to check the development is in line with dates. He looks at the placenta development, gestational sac and developing organs. Then a week after this at approx week 11, I have a choice between a combined test and an integrated test which are two ways of identify the risk of downs and other chromosome before more intrusive procedures. If the results from this warrant it I then have the choice of CVS (Chorioinic Villus Sampling) or amniocentesis both have pros and cons. CVS can be done between 11-14 weeks so if something is wrong and you opt for termination you can have it surgically but it has a 1% miscarriage risk. Amnio is done at about 19 weeks and if something wrong you would have to give birth to the fetus to terminate but the miscarriage risk is only 0.5%. Then I can have a biophysical profile which is a__sessment of the baby movements muscle tone, breathing and growth measurements. Fetal anatomy scan and fetal cardiac scan which effectively check everything not checked yet. Hope this helps, I just don’t want to take any chances.

Hi MaryH - that you got pregnant says your "equipment" is working fine! The majority of miscarriages are inevitable because of something wrong with that particular embryo and the older we get, the more common that is, but it doesn't have any relationship to future pregnancies; in fact you usually have to miscarry 3-4 times in a row before doctors will probe into the possibility of there being a problem with you; even at that point, it can be as a simple a fix as giving you supplemental progesterone or something that low-invasive. The statistics as relate to age are very scary, but they are just math and averages based on millions of people, which means you don't just turn 35 and become "too old." They're factoring in all the women who have diagnosed fertility issues, women who may have started their period at a very early age (and therefore have less eggs when they reach their late 30's), longterm smokers, recreational drug users - you name it, if it's a woman in the age group it's been thrown into the average! I look at it like people who dread turn 50, like the day before, when they were still "49," they were all young and vibrant, and then overnight, the Middle-Age Fairy comes and puts wrinkles on the face, a bad knee, gray hair and a newfound love of Murder She Wrote re-runs. It's preposterous. In any case, being over 35 means insurance will pay for an amnio, which can detect any problem that is chromosomally based, including Downs. That's not until a few months into the pregnancy. You want to get established will an OB as soon as you know you've conceived, and they will monitor the pregnancy by checking your cervix and the position of your uterus, the fetal heartbeat, your blood pressure and glusose levels, your pregnancy hormone levels (in your pee) - this one is a good indicator early on that the pregnancy is progressing on schedule, and asking you about any symptoms. A little later, they will send you for genetic counseling where you discuss the statistics (more math!) of possibly inherited problems - if you tell them straight away that you're going to have the amnio, they won't bother with this). Then come the ultrasounds - you say hello to your little Planter's Peanut! They check for all vital organ and limb development, take measurements of the length and the estimated size of head, and they do something called a nuchal translucency exam, which is something related to the thickness of the back of the neck - a really thick one is a sign of Downs. They check for cleft palate, ears, digits, limbs, and try to get a glimpse of the s_x - you can tell them not to let you know if you want to be surprised (you have to do this at the amnio, too). Throughout the pregnancy, you will be checked for the blood pressure and glucose levels, and you'll have your tummy measured. If you are very nervous, you can buy or rent a fetal doppler and then you can listen to the baby's heartbeat whenever you feel like it. I personally felt very rea__sured once I got to the point where you can feel the baby kicking - both my boys were total spazzes all the way to the delivery room, so I never worried if either was okay in there. I didn't mean to be so longwinded!!! I'm new at this chatboard thing and haven't figured out how to be succinct yet!

Hi, I am 36 and pregnant with baby # 4 ( the last one). I had a healthy baby girl at 30, when I was having baby # 2, I agreed to the afp test which It came back that I was at a "higher" risk of having a downs baby, I was then given the option of amnio, which I declined, after some research and finding that the amnio had a higher risk than the downs, I still worried for 4 months, I delivered a healthy baby girl and found that the tests (other than amnio) which carries too many risks for me, are not very reliable at all, and that came directly from my obgyn. I had another healthy baby at 34 (a boy), in which my hubby and I decided NOT to have the AFP or amnio, because we would not have terminated anyway. I am now having #4 at 36 and have chosen once again not to have all of those unreliable tests. Everyone has to make their own decisions, but for me, amnio was just too risky, when it really would have made no difference in our decision of wheather to have our babies. Just thought I'd share. Just because you are over 35, does not mean that you WILL have a baby with any health problems, if fact, the chances are very good that you will have a happy, healthy baby.

I am a late bloomer! Went to university later on, got married later on etc...we had our first baby when I was 38 and he was completely normal. I am 42 now and pregnant with our second baby and in our 7th month. All our screening came back normal with no red flags. We opted out of amnio - had the NT at 3 months and the triple screen at 4 months. My doctor explained it a great way: Sure you are at more risk than a 20 year old for downs etc...BUT...less women at our age get pregnant so sometimes the numbers seem higher than they really are - does that make sense? The hardest thing for me being preggers at 42 is being (probably) a lot more tired than a 28 year old - my body has seen more - you know what I mean. Best advice I can give - FIND AN OBGYN you respect and hopefully like. The most key thing is keeping tabs on how the pregnancy is affecting your body - more than anything. (we are at higher risk for gestational diabetes etc...).

Hi Mary... Sorry about your miscarriage. I had one at about 9 weeks in 2005 and had a healthy baby this year at age 37. Like the others said, you're not necessarily at risk for a child with birth defects due to your age or prior miscarriages. We did do the NT (nuchal translucency) test and then amnio, and also had a fetal echocardiogram (a very indepth heart ultrasound) due to the NT results. Pregnancy after m/c is very nerve wracking but you just have to take it day by day, try to take good care of yourself, and do whatever tests you think will be helpful for you. Best of luck...

I'm 38 and having baby #2. My son is 11. Big difference between 27 and 38, however, I've appreciated and enjoyed this pregnancy more. As far as tests, my dr. offered an AFP test and then a genetic consult to discuss amnio. I declined all of them. The dr. said that alot of times the AFP gives false results, which leads to an amnio, and those are risky for the baby. Other than that, I have had a bunch of ultrasounds that have been very thorough. Based on those she looks great and we're going to take a chance that she'll be fine. We weren't going to play with nature anyway and my husband didn't want me upset for the remaining months of the pregnancy if we found out something was wrong with her through an amnio. The ultrasounds can see an awful lot, and they will be able to take measurements, etc. to see if he/she is right where she should be. I would say try to relax and know that the odds are in your favor that you will have a healthy baby. There are a ton of women our age having babies these days!

I am a 38 year old woman whois married with 1 child who is not 12. My husband came to me the other day amd said he thinks he might want to get a vasectomy. My initial thought is "what". After some thought, I think I would like to have one more baby first. Am I to old at this poin to start again?

how are you all doing now... i am single. i have kids age 10, 6, and 1. i want 2 more to make my family complete... yes even in this ecconomy.. even not being married. no i am not on welfare. i work everyday, and take care of my family alone. but always wanted a big family. you all are lucky to have husbands. 2 more kids would be a breeze if i were married! sorry for anyone who lost a child. hope you all are well today!

NO YOU ARE NOT TOO OLD. GET YOUR GROOVE ON AND MAKE THAT BABY! TIME WAITS FOR NO WOMAN....