Egg (Oocyte) Donation

We performed our first Egg Donation treatment in 1988. Since that time, Egg Donation has become a mainstream treatment for infertility. The widespread use of Egg Donation treatment is mainly due to the fact that most women past the age of 41 will need donor egg treatment to have a child.

 

Children conceived with the help of Egg Donation are genetically linked to the male partner and the egg donor, but you (the female partner) are the one who becomes pregnant, nourishes the baby throughout the pregnancy and experiences the birth.

 

Egg Donation is the most effective fertility treatment available. The probability of a successful pregnancy depends primarily on the fertility potential of the egg donor but you should expect a 50% to 80% probability of a successful outcome at Bay IVF Center.

 

Since the physician care at Bay IVF Center is free and we only bill for the laboratory portion of the Egg Donation procedure, our treatment costs are significantly reduced compared with typical Egg Donation fees.

 

Finding an egg donor is the first step in initiating the Egg Donation treatment. The donor can be a relative, a friend, or you may wish to use an egg donor agency. These agencies have a number of pre-selected egg donors for you to choose from. Most Egg Donation treatments are anonymous, as it is not medically necessary to meet the egg donor.

 

The donor you select becomes a patient at Bay IVF Center. As a part of the required prerequisites, she is genetically screened at our center for over a hundred hereditary conditions.

 

Egg Donation Procedure

 

The Egg Donation procedure is similar to In Vitro Fertilization. The egg donor's ovaries are stimulated, her eggs are aspirated, inseminated with sperm from the recipient's partner, incubated, and one or more of the resulting embryos are transferred into the recipient's uterus.

 

 

Below is a simplified example of an Egg Donation treatment sequence. Actual treatment is always individualized.

 

Medications are given as pills (oral contraceptives), vaginal capsules (progesterone), skin patches (Vivelle), or very small injections just under the skin (Lupron, FSH, HCG). The recipient also takes one intramuscular injection (progesterone) once a day for four days.

 

This is an example of an Egg Donation treatment sequence. Actual treatment is individualized:

 

Egg Donor

Embryo Recipient

 

 

Egg Donation treatment consists of the following five steps:

1. Ovarian Stimulation

    

   The egg donor takes Lupron hormone injections to temporarily stop her own Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) production to create a “clean slate” for ovarian stimulation. FSH injections are then added to stimulate production of high quality eggs (usually 12+ eggs).

    

   During the 8 to 12 day ovarian stimulation, two to four ultrasound examinations and blood estrogen tests will be needed to follow the development of the eggs.

    

   When the eggs have become sufficiently mature, the egg donor will take an injection of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) hormone. This medication completes the maturation process of the eggs.

    

   The ultrasound image below shows a stimulated ovary. Each of the grape-like follicles (dark circles) contains a microscopic egg.

    

   

    

    

   The Egg Donation recipient also takes Lupron injections to start the synchronization process between the development of future embryos and the recipient’s uterine lining. The endometrial lining is stimulated with estrogen skin patches, progesterone vaginal capsules, and four progesterone injections.

    

2. Egg Retrieval

    

   Thirty-six hours after the HCG injection, the egg donor has an egg retrieval in our center. This is normally a 5 to 10 minute procedure. The egg retrieval procedure is the end of the egg donor’s participation in the treatment.

    

3. Fertilization

    

   The recipient’s partner collects a semen sample by masturbation either at home or at our center and the highest quality sperm are added to the eggs six hours after the egg retrieval. During the subsequent overnight incubation, sperm penetrate the egg shell and fertilize the eggs.

    

   If your infertility history suggests the possibility of male infertility significant enough to keep the eggs from being fertilized using this method, you will be scheduled for Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) procedure. In ICSI, a single sperm is inserted directly into an egg using micromanipulators.

    

   The next day, the eggs are examined for signs of fertilization. A normally fertilized egg (zygote) will show two pronuclei representing the genetic material from the egg and sperm (see images below).

    

   The following day, embryos reach 4 cells, the day after, 8 cells and by the fifth day after the egg retrieval, the embryos should reach the blastocyst stage.

     Fertilized Egg

  Four Cell Embryo

   Eight Cell Embryo

       Blastocyst

4. Embryo Transfer

    

   Two to five days after the egg retrieval, the resulting embryo(s) is/are transferred into the uterus by passing a thin embryo transfer catheter through the cervix to the top of the uterus. This is a quick procedure that does not require any pain medications. You will be able to decide the number of embryos to transfer.

    

   Additional embryos that are not transferred at this time can be cryopreserved and stored in liquid nitrogen for potential future use.

    

5. Establishment of Pregnancy

    

   A blood pregnancy test is scheduled two weeks after the egg retrieval. A fetal heartbeat ultrasound is performed two weeks and two days after a positive pregnancy test.

   

    

   The ultrasound picture on the left shows a six week pregnancy. The pregnancy sac is approximately 25 mm in diameter. The baby inside the sac is about 13 mm long, and yet it is possible to already distinguish the head and the "tail" portion of the baby's body as well as strong cardiac activity.

    

   Estrogen and progesterone supplementation for the pregnancy continues for 6 to 8 weeks. By that time, the placenta produces enough of its own estrogen and progesterone that the supplementation can stop.

    

   At this point, your pregnancy becomes indistinguishable from a conception through intercourse. It is up to you whether to let your OB doctor know that you conceived through Egg Donation.

 

For additional in-depth information, please see Egg Donation Treatment Protocol, Pregnancy Probability, Egg Donation Cost, and Egg Donation Prerequisites.

 

If you have any questions regarding Egg Donation or to request an appointment, please contact us by phone at 650-322-0500, via email at care@BayIVF.com, or use the Contact Bay IVF Center form on this page.