Egg and embryo donation explained

For couples who are struggling with fertility disorders, assisted reproductive treatments like egg and embryo (fertilized-egg) donations are the perfect solution to having a baby.

Egg and embryo donations are both third-party reproductive treatments where donors assist a couple to conceive a child. These procedures make it feasible for the couple to get pregnant even though one or both of them are not able to provide their own sperm, eggs, or embryos.

Although not as much talked about as sperm surrogacy, egg and embryo donation is getting fairly common and widely accepted these days. This is also because both procedures have been known to have resulted in healthy pregnancies for numerous couples across the world!

Egg donation

Egg donation is the solution to infertility for couples who are suffering from a diminished ovarian reserve, poor egg quality, or any other unexplained female fertility disorder.

The egg donation procedure requires in-vitro fertilization. In egg donation, an egg from other women is fertilized in a laboratory with the sperm from the male partner. This fertilized egg is then transferred to the womb of the female partner.

Embryo Donation

Embryo donation is a feasible treatment option for couples where both partners are suffering from fertility disorders and the couple requires both egg and sperm donation to be able to conceive a child. This is also a medical procedure for single women who cannot use their own eggs to get pregnant.

In the embryo donation process, another couple’s embryo is transferred to the female partner’s uterus by means of an IVF procedure. Also referred to as embryo adoption, in this process, the intended parents utilize the embryos that were created by individuals during their fertility treatment. These embryos are the ones that are remaining from other couple’s IVF treatment process.

Before undergoing embryo donation, it is necessary for the female partner to get herself evaluated for the uterine cavity. The specialists will also prepare the female partner’s endometrium with estrogen and progesterone for the transfer of the embryo.

The embryo is transferred into the female partner’s uterus within 3 to 5 days after the egg has been fertilized in the laboratory.

How is Egg Donation different from Embryo Donation?

Although both these treatments sound similar, they are quite different in terms of the sperm that is being used to fertilize the egg in the laboratory.

The egg donation process uses the unfertilized egg which means that the male partner’s sperms are used to fertilize the egg of other women. Whereas, the embryo donation process utilizes an embryo from another couple that is ready to be embedded in the female partner’s womb without using the sperms of the male partner.

In egg donation, the male partner is able to keep a genetic link with the child and the female partner also experiences a biological connection through pregnancy as opposed to the embryo donation where although the couple goes through pregnancy and experience childbirth, there is absolute lack of the genetic link.

Thus, embryo donation is the only choice for singles or couples that are suffering from the absence of quality sperms or have unexplained male fertility disorder. And egg donation is most probable to work for couples who have access to healthy sperms.

When must a couple opt for egg donation?

There are many reasons due to which a couple may decide to conceive a child through egg or embryo donation. Given below is a list of the most common reasons for egg or embryo donation:

•  The female partner has normal ovulation but poor quality eggs
• She has severely diminished ovarian reserve
• She is of advanced reproductive age (38 years or older)
• She has a poor response to ovarian stimulation medicines
• She has had numerous failed IVF cycles in the past
• She risks the passing on of a genetic disease
• She is going through premature menopause
• The ovaries of the female partner have been removed surgically
• She was born without ovaries
• She has been treated for cancer and has undergone chemotherapy or other radiation therapy
• Any other medical disorders or treatments that have affected the ovaries

When must a couple opt for embryo donation?

Below mentioned are some common instances when the couple must plan for embryo donation to get pregnant:

• Any couple that is unlikely to conceive using the female partner’s egg and the sperms from the male partner
• Unexplained and untreatable infertility in both male and female partner
• Infertility disorder of single women
• Women without a male partner who has achieved menopause
• Genetic disorders affecting one or both partners
• Recurrent pregnancy loss that is believed to be due to embryonic factors

It is essential for the couple seeking egg or embryo donation to understand that the probability of success using either of these donor treatments is highly dependent upon the age of the donor and the number and quality of donated eggs and embryos.

Conclusion

Egg donation and embryo donation are highly effective procedures for couples facing fertility issues. These help the couple to conceive a child and experience a healthy pregnancy.

We at Genesis Fertility and Laparoscopy Centre have immense experience in offering egg donation and embryo adoption medical services along with a large number of happy couples who have largely benefitted from these assisted reproductive treatment programs.

If you have any queries about the treatment procedures or would like to speak to the medical practitioners before undergoing treatment, schedule a consultation with the fertility experts at Genesis Fertility and Laparoscopy Centre today!