What is Egg Donation?

Who should think about using an egg donor?

If a woman wants to become a mother and have a kid but is unable to conceive with her own eggs, she can consider egg donation. The reason for this could be that she was born without ovaries, is going through menopause, hasn’t always responded well to hormonal stimulation of her ovaries, or has had poor egg or embryo quality in the past with IVF treatments. If a woman has any specific illness that she doesn’t want to pass on to her children, she may also think about using a donor.

Who is eligible to donate eggs?

Women who are willing to donate their eggs to other women are known as egg donors. These women are often between the ages of 21 and 34. They could be unnamed (anonymous) or acquainted with the receiver’s parents. Through egg donation programmes or organisations, anonymous donors are found who are not known to the recipient. However, some couples use advertising to find donors for them. Donor recruitment without the use of an intermediary should be done with caution, and recipients should seriously consider consulting legal counsel. Known donors, also known as directed donors, are frequently a recipient’s close acquaintance or relative.

What examinations are conducted on the donor?

The donor is examined for diseases such as syphilis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia, hepatitis B and C, and HIV. To confirm that none of the donors are cystic fibrosis gene carriers, all donors should go under the testing. Based on the history and race of the donor, additional genetic testing should be done on the donor. Although testing for Fragile X syndrome and chromosome analysis are done in some cases, it is not necessary. The process of screening for mental health frequently includes psychometric testing.

Oocytes

Oocytes are developing eggs (an immature ovum). Within a follicle, oocytes grow until they are fully developed. The outer layer of the ovaries contains these follicles. Several follicles start to form during each reproductive cycle.

Normally, only one oocyte will grow into an egg and leave its follicle per cycle. Ovulation is the term for this action.

All of a woman’s oocytes are present when she is born. With ageing, this amount naturally declines. The quality and genetic stability of the oocytes are also compromised by ageing. This is the reason it’s more difficult to get pregnant after 35.

Who Uses Donated Eggs?

• Couples who desire to conceive a child biologically utilising the male’s sperm but the lady has low quality or no eggs.
• Women with an intact uterus but no ovaries Women with hereditary conditions they don’t want to pass on to their offspring
• Women who are older than 42

Egg donation Process

• Hormone injections are given to the egg donor to encourage multiple egg ovulation. The injections allow many eggs to grow at once in addition to the one egg that women naturally produce each month. Her fertility specialist schedules the surgery for when her eggs are developed and ready to be extracted.
• A sedative is administered to the egg donor, and each mature follicle is punctured with an ultrasound-guided needle to extract each egg. The recipient’s partner’s sperm or chosen donor sperm will be used to try to fertilise multiple eggs in a lab. In vitro fertilisation is the process at hand (IVF).
• The recipient’s uterus is then used to receive an embryo (fertilised egg).

Risks and side effects of Egg donation

1. The hazards associated with egg donation are minimal. The same procedures, drugs, and level of risk apply to egg donors as they do to women who use their own eggs during IVF.
2. Using anaesthesia during the egg retrieval procedure presents a minor risk, however significant issues are rare.
3. When the physician uses the needle to access the ovary, some women may bleed. Damage to the intestines, bladder, or adjacent blood arteries may take place in uncommon circumstances. The likelihood of significant harm or major bleeding is low.
4. After the eggs are removed, infection may also develop. Antibiotics may be recommended by the doctor to stop this.
5. The medications a doctor recommends to help an egg donor ovulate occasionally result in OHSS, which can be mild, moderate, or severe. Always seek medical advice.
6. Hospitalization may be necessary in severe cases, with symptoms like: fast weight gain, respiratory problems,  nausea, and vomiting.

How to Find and Select an Egg Donor

Although most egg donors remain anonymous, some couples wish to know who their egg donor is and may go to legal lengths to get into an agreement to donate their eggs. If the donor is acquainted with the parents, he or she could want to be contacted after the baby is born or even ask to visit. Even when the egg donor is a close friend or relative, it is always advisable to employ an egg donor contract that clearly states the terms of any potential future relationship.

Ask your fertility clinic whether they have available donors that they have already screened if you wish to use donor eggs. You might want to find a donor through one of the numerous egg donor agencies and registries because some facilities have lengthy waiting lists. In college newspapers and other publications that young women read, some persons publish advertisements for donors.

Summary

Egg donation is a quick treatment with a high success rate. It involves a doctor taking an egg from a donor who has been thoroughly vetted. A fresh egg donation might cost anywhere between Rs.250000 and Rs.300000.

In order to stimulate the ovaries and stop their menstrual cycle, donor women will take medication.

Under sedation, anaesthesia, or the assistance of medicines, the procedure is performed. A donor may require several days to recuperate.

Despite the possibility of physical and psychological negative effects, egg donation and implantation are a typically secure and well-tolerated procedure.