Pregnancy in the older woman: scientific and ethical aspects.

Societal trends in the past decades have encouraged women to delay childbearing. Oocyte donation with hormone replacement therapy can sustain a pregnancy in women of all ages provided they have a uterus. The physiological changes associated with pregnancy constitute a burden on any woman regardless of her age. For mothers over 40, maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality increase with age. This article discusses the ethical aspects of pregnancy in the older woman.