Egg Donation

What is egg donation?

Egg donation is a treatment option for conceiving via eggs donated by another female. This treatment involved in vitro fertilization, where eggs are mostly first fertilized in the lab. This treatment is a great option for females who are trying to conceive in later years of their life, typically 35 plus, and are facing shortage of their own eggs.

An egg donor may have taken the decision for altruistic reason or for financial compensation or both.

When is egg donation required?

Egg donation could be required in one or more of the following cases:

• Female’s is unable to conceive with her own eggs
• Chances of a viable pregnancy are very low with female’s own eggs
• IVF with female’s own eggs is not financially workable
• Quality of eggs is not good due to higher reproductive age of the female (usually 40 plus)
• Elevated levels of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH)
• 3 consecutive unexplained IVF failures
• An early menopause
• Female is born without ovaries
• Female’s ovaries are damaged or surgically taken out removed due to certain illness
• A genetic disorder in the female, where it is advised to use a donor’s egg
• Female’s diagnosed with unexplained infertility
• In case it is a gay couple

Mostly the age of egg donors ranges between 21 to 35 years old. They are fertile and have superior quality and quantity of eggs.

Egg Donation Process and Screening

As a process, egg donors are first selected and then screened through few tests. Then they have to give a consent for egg donation.

After this, the egg donor needs to go through the in vitro fertilization (IVF) stimulation therapy, which is followed by egg retrieval.

The entire donation cycle mostly takes between three to six weeks.

Screening process typically involves mental and physical fitness, fertility check and examination of transmissible diseases.

All our egg donors undergo a psychological screening to ensure that she is making an informed decision before beginning the donation process.

In the physical exam, blood tests and ultrasound are done to see the quantity and quality of eggs, and the possibility of a good result.

The screening process is thorough and minimizes any risk of congenital anomalies or genetic diseases.

Donor and recipient matching

Egg donors might need to be matched with a recipient before starting the donation process.  Less than 25 percent of the total cases use previously frozen eggs, while the rest are donors and recipients undergoing the treatment together.

Legal Implications

In the legal documents, the woman who receives the egg is recorded as the birth mother of the child produced through egg donation.

Success rate

The success rate for using donor eggs is generally higher than using one’s own eggs. The reason is that females who are mostly trying IVF treatment with their own eggs tend to be more aged and less fertile than egg donors, who are typically younger and more fertile.

We at IFC have a large egg donation bank. It consists of great quality of eggs. We also have a databank of our old donors, ready to donate again, who have successfully donated eggs which have resulted in conception.

Since we are one of the best IVF treatment facilities in India, our egg donation process is also hugely popular and successful. We keep the donor data strictly confidential and is never shared with the couple receiving the egg.