Egg Freezing

In recent years, egg freezing has become a groundbreaking choice for women hoping to maintain their fertility. Owing to personal circumstances, physical conditions, or career goals, egg freezing allows women to prolong their reproductive years. Put your fertility in the hands of a pioneer in reproductive medicine. The best caliber of care is guaranteed by Dr. Sunita Arora, the best Obstetrician Gynecologist and fertility Specialist in Delhi, who has extensive training and experience to maximize the preservation and recovery of eggs.

Understanding Egg Freezing

Oocyte cryopreservation, another name for egg freezing, is a medical process in which a woman's eggs are removed from her ovaries, frozen, and kept for later use. By preserving their eggs while they are still young and of excellent quality, women might lessen the impact of the age-related drop in fertility.

The Egg Freezing Process

First Consultation: The procedure usually starts with a consultation with a reproductive fertility doctor. During this session, the doctor reviews the patient's medical history, discusses her reproductive objectives, and uses ultrasound and blood tests to determine the woman's ovarian reserve.

Ovarian Stimulation: The woman will initiate ovarian stimulation after deciding whether to proceed with egg freezing. Hormone medicines, usually injected subcutaneously, stimulate the ovaries to generate numerous eggs during a single menstrual cycle. Gonadotropins, which promote the development and maturation of several ovarian follicles, each containing an immature egg (oocyte), are often used to stimulate ovarian follicles.

Monitoring: During the ovarian stimulation procedure, the woman will regularly have blood tests and transvaginal ultrasound examinations performed. These procedures evaluate the follicle development and hormone levels in the ovaries to ascertain the ideal time for egg retrieval.

Egg Retrieval: Once the ovarian follicles have attained the proper size and maturity, the lady has a minor surgical operation known as transvaginal ultrasound-guided follicle aspiration or egg retrieval. To ease discomfort, egg retrieval is usually done under sedation or mild anesthetic. A tiny needle is introduced through the vaginal wall and into each ovarian follicle under the guidance of transvaginal ultrasonography to aspirate (suction out) the fluid and mature eggs inside. The eggs are then taken out and sent to the lab for further processing.

Egg Freezing: The quality and maturity of the recovered eggs are assessed in the lab. After they are mature enough to be frozen, eggs are ready for cryopreservation. The eggs are submerged in a unique solution to help shield them from harm as they freeze. After that, they are cautiously placed into vials or straws for cryopreservation.

Vitrification: Through a process known as vitrification, the eggs are quickly chilled to temperatures below freezing, protecting the fragile egg architecture and preventing the creation of ice crystals. Following vitrification, the eggs are placed in cryogenic storage tanks and kept at extremely low temperatures (usually -196°C) until needed.

Storage

Depending on the individual's needs and preferences, frozen eggs can be kept for a long time—often for years or indefinitely. Modern cryogenic equipment is installed in storage facilities to guarantee the eggs' long-term preservation.

Future Use

When the woman is ready to use the frozen eggs, they are thawed in the lab and evaluated for viability. In vitro fertilization (IVF) is the process of fertilizing thawed eggs with sperm, and the resultant embryos are cultured and watched for development.

The process aims to become pregnant by transferring the viable embryos to the woman's uterus for implantation.

Advantages of Freezing Eggs

• Fertility Preservation: By freezing their eggs early, women can protect their fertility before age-related deterioration of the egg quality occurs.
• Empowerment and Control: Egg freezing allows women to travel, pursue their professional or educational objectives, and choose the perfect partner without feeling pressured to have a baby immediately.
• Medical Reasons: To protect their future capacity to conceive biological children, women undergoing cancer treatment, patients with specific medical disorders, or those undergoing elective surgery may find egg freezing beneficial.
• Family Planning: Egg freezing allows women to put off having children until they are ready—emotionally, monetarily, or personally.

Limitations and Considerations

• Success percentages: Success rates have increased, but it's crucial to realize that not every frozen egg will result in a live baby despite advancements in egg-freezing technology. Success rates can differ based on several factors, including age, egg quality, and the fertility clinic's experience level.
• Cost: The process of freezing eggs can be costly, requiring several rounds of ovarian stimulation and charges for egg retrieval and storage. The price of subsequent IVF treatments for embryo transfer should also be considered.
• Ethical and Social Issues: Egg freezing presents ethical and social issues, such as worries about the long-term consequences of hormone stimulation on the body, the implications of egg donation, and the psychological impacts of delaying parenthood.
• Age-Related Factors: A woman's age at the time of egg retrieval directly impacts egg-freezing success; younger women with greater ovarian reserve tend to have higher success rates.
• Emotional Preparation: Freezing eggs can be emotionally taxing, necessitating severe thought about one's objectives, expectations, and the possible results of preserving fertility.

In conclusion, egg freezing gives women a great chance to take charge of their reproductive destiny and maintain their fertility in the long run. Women who know the procedure, advantages, and restrictions associated with egg freezing are better equipped to decide if it is the best course. Egg freezing offers a route to parenting on one's own, whether planning for the future, pursuing career ambitions, or dealing with health issues.

Dr. Sunita Arora, an obstetrician, gynecologist, and fertility specialist in Delhi, focuses on creating customized egg-freezing plans. Dream about the future, but also protect it.