Your Biological clock is Ticking – Ladies, Be Aware!!!Dr Chaithra S.K

This patient Smt. Sudharani(Name changed) approached the doctor along with her husband, Venkatesh Murthy(Name changed). She was 31 years and he was 38 years old. They were married for 5 years now. They had difficulty in Conceiving .When they wanted to consult a doctor, her Mother in law had told them not to do so because even she had only after 5 years of marriage life. So they resorted to Pooja, Homa, Havana, Astrology, Alternative medicines etc.

When all the investigations and scans were done, She was found to have very low reserves in the ovaries i.e very few eggs left in her ovaries. Then she gave the history that her mother had attained Premature Menopause at the age of 39 only!

Then the doctor explained to her that when the mother has attained premature menopause, daughter should be extra cautious and approach the doctor early if they have difficulty in conceiving. She had wasted her precious 5 years of early marriage.

Also doctor explained to her that that if her Mother in law had Conceived after 5years , it does not mean that Daughter in law also has to wait for 5 years to consult a doctor. When the couple has difficulty in Conceiving, they have to approach a doctor after trying for 1 year or so. If the lady is >35 years, they have to consult a doctor after 6-8 months itself as age is a very precious for a lady.

This lady had thyroid problem also, so it was corrected before resorting to other infertility treatment.

She was given few medication & injection for good egg to develop. She was monitored carefully once in 2-3 days by scans and blood tests. Once the egg developed well, IUI was done and she conceived in the same cycle. 9 months of pregnancy was uncomplicated and she delivered a healthy girl child. The entire family was joyful and happy for this.

Premature ovarian failure is a condition where a lady has ovarian function stopped before 40 years, it usually happens at 48-52 years of age.

Before the stage of ovarian failure, the lady will be having poor ovarian reserves in the early 30’s itself. So the lady should not waste her precious reproductive age without approaching a doctor. Usually premature ovarian failure run in the families and her genetic predisposition. So if the mother has Premature Menopause, the daughter should be extra careful in assessing her ovarian function.

By proper guidance and correct treatment this lady could get baby of her own genetic material ; otherwise she should have resorted to donor egg pregnancies which many of the couples do not opt for.