Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 5, 2026
10:00
Measurement of Lifespan in Drosophila melanogaster
Published on: January 7, 2013
Paternal age and mortality in children
Jin Liang Zhu1, Mogens Vestergaard, Kreesten M Madsen
1The Danish Epidemiology Science Centre, University of Aarhus, Vennelyst Boulevard 6, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark. zjl@soci.au.dk
European Journal of Epidemiology
|April 26, 2008
Summary
Advanced paternal age increases offspring mortality risk. Children of fathers aged 45+ face higher risks of death, particularly from congenital malformations and injury, highlighting the impact of paternal age on child survival.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive health
- Pediatric mortality
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Paternal age is a potential factor influencing offspring health outcomes.
- Previous studies on paternal age and child mortality have yielded unsettled results.
- This study investigates the association between paternal age and childhood mortality, considering confounding factors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the relationship between paternal age and mortality in children.
- To determine if advanced paternal age is associated with increased offspring mortality.
- To account for maternal age and socioeconomic factors in the analysis.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the Danish Fertility Database (1980-1996) to identify a cohort of 102,879 couples and their firstborn singleton children.
- Linked the cohort data to the nationwide register on cause of death (1980-1998) to ascertain childhood deaths (N=831).
- Employed statistical analysis to assess the association between paternal age and overall and cause-specific mortality rates, adjusting for confounders.
Main Results:
- A U-shaped association was observed between paternal age and overall childhood mortality.
- Children of fathers aged 45 years or older showed significantly increased mortality rate ratios (MRR) compared to those with fathers aged 25-29.
- Specific causes of death with higher MRRs in offspring of older fathers included congenital malformations and injury or poisoning.
Conclusions:
- Advanced paternal age (45 years and older) is associated with increased offspring mortality, persisting into adulthood.
- The findings support accumulating evidence on the adverse effects of advanced paternal age in procreation.
- This study underscores the importance of considering paternal age in reproductive health and pediatric mortality research.
Related Concept Videos
01:09Changes in the Appendicular Skeleton with Age
The upper and lower limb initially develops as a small bulge called a limb bud, which appears on the lateral side of the early embryo. The upper limb bud appears near the end of the fourth week of development, with the lower limb bud appearing shortly after.
Initially, the limb buds consist of a core of mesenchyme covered by a layer of ectoderm. The ectoderm at the end of the limb bud thickens to form a narrow crest called the apical ectodermal ridge. This ridge stimulates the underlying...
Initially, the limb buds consist of a core of mesenchyme covered by a layer of ectoderm. The ectoderm at the end of the limb bud thickens to form a narrow crest called the apical ectodermal ridge. This ridge stimulates the underlying...
01:24Pharmacokinetics in Pediatric Patients: Drug Metabolism
In pediatric care, understanding the nuances of hepatic drug metabolism is crucial, as it significantly differs from that of adults. This divergence is primarily due to the developmental stage of drug-metabolizing enzymes, which affects how medications are processed in the body. In neonates, for instance, the activity of Phase I enzymes—critical for the initial breakdown of drugs—is markedly reduced, functioning at just 20–40% of the levels seen in adults. This reduction poses a challenge in...
01:18Pharmacokinetics in Geriatric Patients: Effect of Age on Drug Excretion
In geriatric patients, renal physiology undergoes significant changes, including diminished renal blood flow and a lower glomerular filtration rate (GFR), leading to alterations in medication clearance. Drugs such as aminoglycoside antibiotics, lithium, and digoxin, which rely on glomerular filtration for removal from the body, particularly impact pharmacokinetics. These drugs tend to have slower clearance rates in older adults, necessitating careful dosage considerations.Evaluation of renal...
01:23Pharmacokinetics in Pediatric Patients: Overview and Drug Absorption
Understanding the physiological differences in the pediatric population is crucial for effective pharmacotherapy. Neonates, infants, and children exhibit significant variations in gastric pH, gastric emptying time, intestinal transit time, and biliary function. These variations profoundly affect oral drug absorption, necessitating a nuanced approach to pediatric dosing.Neonates present with a unique physiological profile, having a gastric pH greater than 4 and faster and more irregular gastric...
01:27Pharmacodynamics in Geriatric Patients: Effects of Age
Age-related pharmacokinetic changes are extensively documented, but understanding age-related pharmacodynamic alterations is relatively limited. This knowledge gap can be partly attributed to the complexity of developing appropriate measures of drug responses compared to bioanalytical methods for determining drug concentrations.Most information regarding age-related differences in human pharmacodynamics originates from cross-sectional studies. However, these studies assume that observed mean...
01:22Life Tables
A life table is a statistical tool that summarizes the mortality and survival patterns of a population, providing detailed insights into the likelihood of survival or death across different age intervals within a cohort. By organizing data on survival probabilities and mortality rates, life tables offer a clear snapshot of population dynamics over time. They are extensively used in demography, public health, actuarial science, and ecology to analyze life expectancy, design health interventions,...