Egg freezing, or oocyte cryopreservation, is a medical procedure that allows women to preserve their eggs for future use. This offers women the opportunity to delay motherhood for various reasons. Here, you can go through an overview of the process, motivations, consideration and future uses for the preserved eggs.
The Process of Egg Freezing
- Initial Consultation and Assessment: The first step in the process is a consultation with a fertility specialist where the doctor will evaluate the woman's overall health, ovarian reserve, namely the number of eggs in the ovaries and discuss her reasons for egg freezing. Additionally, blood tests and an ultrasound are typically performed to assess the ovarian reserve.
- Ovarian Stimulation: To retrieve multiple eggs, the woman undergoes ovarian stimulation. This involves daily hormone injections for about 10-14 days to stimulate the ovaries to produce multiple mature eggs. The medications used include follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH). Regular monitoring through blood tests and ultrasounds and the eventual adjustments to the dosage ensure that the ovaries are responding appropriately to the medication.
- Egg Retrieval: Once the eggs are mature, they are retrieved through a minor surgical procedure called transvaginal ultrasound aspiration. This is usually done under sedation or anesthesia. A needle is inserted through the vaginal wall to reach the ovaries and extract the eggs. The procedure typically takes about 20-30 minutes.
- Freezing the Eggs: The retrieved eggs are then frozen using a process called vitrification. This rapid freezing technique prevents the formation of ice crystals, which can damage the eggs. The eggs are stored in liquid nitrogen at extremely low temperatures (-196°C). Vitrification has significantly improved the survival rates of eggs during the freezing and retrieval process.
Why Is Egg Freezing Done?
Depending on the reasons for choosing to start the procedure, egg freezing can be either medical or social.
- Medical Freezing: This type of egg freezing where women want to freeze their eggs due to actual or future medical reasons that can affect fertility is called medical freezing. For example, women undergoing treatments like chemotherapy or radiation, may choose to freeze their eggs beforehand. Additionally, motives for medical egg freezing include suffering from conditions such as endometriosis or autoimmune diseases which can also impact fertility.
- Social Egg Freezing: In the case where the motivation for eff freezing lies in age-related fertility decline, personal and professional development, the term social egg freezing is used. As women age, the quantity and quality of their eggs decline, therefore freezing eggs at a younger age can preserve healthier eggs for future use. Women in their late 20s to early 30s are often considered ideal candidates for egg freezing. Besides this, social egg freezing provides women with the flexibility to delay motherhood until they feel more prepared, either financially and career wise or partner wise.
Some Important Considerations
- Age Factor: Age is an important factor in the success of egg freezing due to younger eggs having a higher chance of resulting in a successful pregnancy. Studies have shown that eggs frozen before the age of 35 have higher success rates.
- Number of Eggs: The more eggs are retrieved and frozen, the better the chances of a successful pregnancy are in the future. On average, 10-20 eggs are retrieved per cycle, but multiple cycles may be needed to achieve an optimal number of frozen eggs.
- Costs: Egg freezing is an expensive procedure, where the costs include the egg retrieval procedure, hormonal medication and annual storage fees. In Germany, the cost of egg freezing typically ranges from €3,500 to €4,500 per cycle. Additionally, after retrieval, annual storage fees vary from €290 to €400.
- Emotional and Physical Impact: Additional consideration when deciding on whether to start the procedure should also be the emotionally and physically effects that come with the hormonal injections and the egg retrieval. Hormonal injections can cause side effects such as bloating, mood swings, and discomfort.
Future Use of Frozen Eggs
When a woman decides to use her frozen eggs, they are thawed and fertilized with sperm in a lab to create embryos. This process is known as in vitro fertilization (IVF). The embryos are then transferred to the woman's uterus in a procedure called embryo transfer. If successful, the embryo implants in the uterine lining, leading to pregnancy. The success rates of IVF with frozen eggs are comparable to those with fresh eggs.