How does age affect TCM fertility treatments and success rates?

Thanks for the D2D. Age is a huge factor in fertility. Clinical practice has observed that treatment is most effective towards adults aged between 21-35.

Fertility decreases as one ages. As a woman ages, it takes longer to conceive and the risk of not being able to get pregnant increases. The risk of miscarriage and complications in pregnancy and childbirth also increase. A man's fertility and sexual performance also decline progressively as he ages.

TCM believes that kidney qi declines as one ages. As kidney plays a key role in facilitating reproduction, it is easier to conceive and give birth when kidney qi is at its optimal level. This happens between the age of 21-28.

Thereafter, kidney qi decreases gradually and a woman’s chances of getting pregnant declines. From age 35, kidney qi decreases more significantly, fertility decline speeds up. By age 40, fertility has decreased significantly and risk of pregnancy and birth complications increase.

TCM treatment can increase kidney qi to boost fertility but age is a limiting factor that affects success rates.

If you have been trying to conceive for six months to a year without success, seek medical evaluation and help as soon as possible, before kidney qi declines significantly.

As far back as about 2000 years ago, the earliest TCM texts ⻩帝内经 (Huangdi Neijing, Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor) have detailed how one’s age could affect their fertility. It is written in 素问。上古天真论] (Basic Questions - The Universal Truth), which dictates the states of health that a man and woman would go through as they age, including their reproductive abilities.

Hence, it is long known by TCM physicians that it would be harder for women who are aged 42 or older and men who are 56 or older to conceive a child naturally, even if they undergo TCM treatment, because of our biological makeup.

This corresponds amazingly well with modern medical research. According to the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology, the age of a woman is the single most important determinant of the success rate of any fertility treatment when the woman is using their own eggs. [1]

Antral follicle count (AFC) and the anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) are known as the most reliable markers of a woman's ovarian reserve and are related to her age. According to a study done by KKH on sub-fertile Chinese women from Dec 2010 to Nov 2014 on 1009 Chinese woman between the age of 26 to 44 shows that the both AFC & AMH decline as the age increase. [2]

Therefore if the patient has low ovarian reserves, I would recommend that she undergo 3 months of TCM treatment (1 treatment cycle) to prepare her body before undergoing Western Med treatment like IVF to increase the chances of conception. [3]

As for men, modern medical research has found that the sperm concentration, motility, morphology and seminal volume declines as age increase. [4]

Fortunately, traditional Chinese Medicine has a rich clinical experience in treating male infertility, clinical research done by Tainan Municipal Hospital in Taiwan between 2013 to 2016 found that TCM treatment significantly improved semen quality. The length of 1 treatment cycle is typically around 3 months as the life cycle of sperm is about 74 days. [5][6]

Also read:

The Ultimate Guide to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Fertility Treatments in Singapore (2021)

References:

1. https://www.sart.org/patients/a-patients-guide-to-assisted-reproductive-technology/ general-information/success-rates/

2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29240820/

3. https://www.fertstert.org/article/S0015-0282(17)31551-0/fulltext

4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3253726/

5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6162825/

6. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/325906#summary