The procedure of egg freezing is a lot similar to what you’d expect during an IVF treatment. However, the last implantation procedure is switched with freezing of the retrieved eggs for future use. At Omya Fertility, we focus on walking our patients through each and every step of the procedure with optimal transparency to help them make an informed decision.
Here’s what you can expect from the procedure of egg freezing process:
Ovarian stimulation – Unlike the natural ovulation procedure where a single egg is produced, the patient is given a consistent dose of synthetic hormones to stimulate their ovaries to produce multiple eggs. Our specialists will conduct screenings and blood tests to check the efficiency of the ovarian-stimulation medications along with the hormonal levels. It takes around 10-14 days for the follicles to get ready for egg retrieval after the first dose of the stimulating medications.
Egg retrieval– On the day of the egg retrieval, the patient is put under sedation, following which a transvaginal ultrasound aspiration is used to identify the mature follicles that are filled with the eggs. The specialist uses a needle and guides it through the vagina into the follicle for successful retrieval of the mature eggs.
Freezing – The last step of the procedure is the freezing part. The unfertilized eggs after the retrieval are cooled down to subzero temperatures to freeze them for future use. The procedure we use at Omya fertility for the freezing is called vitrification. The eggs are also frozen with cryoprotectants to prevent the formation of crystals and maintain their viability for future use.
The successful use of frozen eggs to have a child primarily depends on the age of the mother at the time of eggs freezing. Based on the statistical evidence, frozen eggs of younger women have shown higher successful pregnancies than that of older women. It is simple for the reason that older women produce older eggs that can hamper the pregnancy’s success rates.
However, research has shown cryopreservation techniques have reduced developmental abnormalities in the child where the embryos are developed from the frozen eggs.
The success rate of thawing eggs using cryoprotectants is considerably high compared to the slow freezing technique. Since it is a new technique, more statistical data and research are required on the various aspects of the egg freezing process.
Egg freezing is relatively a new technique. One can opt for egg freezing that is done after the egg retrieval stage. Care needs to be taken during the egg retrieval process.
- Tests before ovary stimulation procedure include blood tests, ultrasound, and other tests. These tests are necessary to check the ovarian reserve and ovarian function. The tests performed will give a clear picture of the hormonal requirements and the dosage of medications to be maintained through the rest of the procedure.
- Screening tests also include tests for infectious diseases such as HIV, Hepatitis B, and C.
- A very rare complication of egg retrieval procedure includes bleeding, infection, and damage to the surrounding organs. These complications need proper medications at the best egg freezing clinic in Delhi and elsewhere.
- Cramping, feeling of fullness, swelling of ovaries, abdominal pain may be noticed for a couple of weeks after egg harvesting. Relax and avoid strenuous work for a quicker recovery post egg retrieval.
The frozen eggs are thawed before use with a washing solution. The eggs are then allowed to fuse with the sperm or techniques like ICSI are done to enable fertilization.
In order to ensure successful egg freezing for future use, you need to consult an experienced and highly qualified infertility doctor in delhi. Aside from that, consider a fertility clinic that specializes in this and has a good reputation as well. You need to ensure that the specialist you are consulting is an experienced reproductive endocrinologist.
Once you are done sorting out the semantics and the best clinic and doctor, you need to undergo a few blood tests and screening to assess your reproductive health. The patient needs to undergo the following screenings:
- Ovarian reserve testing
- Infectious disease screening
Once the procedure is done successfully, we sit down with our patients to give them a brief rundown of all the information that they need to be aware of. As for returning to daily activities, we highly recommend waiting for a week and getting optimal rest before returning to day-to-day activities.
We also suggest contacting us if there are any severe symptoms of fever, abdominal pain, weight gain, discomfort, or consistent bleeding.
While the egg freezing procedure has a good amount of success rate, thanks to the evolving medical technologies, it does come with its fair share of considerations too. Not just physically, it is crucial that you prepare yourself mentally for the procedure as well.
Some of the most important considerations are:
- Egg freezing doesn’t always guarantee a successful pregnancy in the future, especially since not all the frozen eggs are viable after the thawing process.
- The optimal timeline for freezing your eggs is between the age of 20 and 30 years when you have a higher ovarian reserve and healthier eggs.
- The egg retrieval process can be physically and mentally taxing for some patients. The reason why we discuss everything with our patients thoroughly is to ensure that they have a complete understanding of things before they go through the treatment.
- The treatment does come with a few side effects, most of which are temporary and curable with the right after-care.
- Women who have a family history of infertility & think they have chances to be infertile, also opt for this process, but first get an overview of infertility through your doctor.Â
- Egg freezing is your best chance at a healthy future pregnancy if you are struggling with chronic or severe medical conditions like cancer.
- The egg freezing cost in Delhi is high and rightfully so. Not just the egg freezing procedure, there are additional costs for the frozen eggs’ storage, which you have to pay separately.
- If you are freezing your eggs and want to get pregnant at a later date using your partner’s or donor’s sperm, we recommend freezing unfertilized eggs. However, freezing fertilized embryos is ideal if you plan on undergoing an IVF treatment with your partner.
It is overwhelming to secure your fertility through egg freezing at any egg freezing clinic/centre. However, There are certain things you need to consider before you move ahead with your plans of egg freezing. It is important to note that as the age of the women increases, the quality and amount of eggs are affected. Ideally, the late twenties or early thirties is regarded as the right age for optimal egg freezing.
The egg freezing cost is influenced by various factors such as the clinic’s infrastructure, laboratory, preservation methodologies, and many more. The Egg Freezing Cost in Delhi is approximately around 1,oo,ooo to 2,00,000 . The cost of egg freezing is calculated for one egg freezing cycle with a storage fee of the eggs for a year. The costs also include medications, testing, egg freezing cost, and expenses relating to the monitoring of eggs.
Fees for thawing, fertilization, and embryo transfer are not included and will be later calculated at the time of egg thawing.