The number of women who are opting for egg freezing have increased a lot in the past few years, as women are focusing more on their careers. There are many options in ART (assisted reproductive technology) that allow women to have the chance of getting pregnant later in life.
In this article, Dr. Mohit Saroagi will explain the egg freezing process. Dr. Mohit Saroagi has an experience for more than years and has been treating patients with infertility issues. He has founded Saraogi hospital, Mumbai which is one of the best IVF hospitals in Mumbai. He says that, when you are looking for an IVF center you may not only be looking for a doctor of repute but also for the IVF Cost in Mumbai. Saraogi Hospital gives an approximate estimate that you may want to look at. It will help you decide better.
Read on to know more about egg freezing.
Who should go for Egg freezing?
Women who have any of the following conditions may opt for egg freezing:
- Conditions or disorders: Conditions such as sickle cell anemia and autoimmune diseases such as lupus. Endometriosis(endometrial lining tissue growing abnormally inside and/or outside the uterus) is a condition that can cause infertility.
- Cancer: Suppose you have cancer and are undergoing any cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, radiology, or hormone therapy. Reproductive cancer might lead to the removal of a woman’s ovaries.
- Career plans: Career-oriented women can have their eggs frozen for future purposes.
- Companies such as Google, amazon, and Facebook fund egg freezing for female employees who want to delay childbirth.
- Personal choices: Some women who do not want to have a baby for some personal reasons but want to have the baby later can go for egg freezing. Dr. Mohit Saroagi, one of the best infertility specialists, says that many women opt for egg freezing because of personal choice.
Steps for egg freezing
Egg freezing has several steps like ovarian stimulation, egg retrieval, and freezing.
1. Ovarian stimulation:
The doctor will give you medications (synthetic hormones) to stimulate your ovaries to produce multiple eggs. This process of injecting hormones will take several weeks.
Some medications include,
- To stimulate ovaries – follitropin alfa or beta (Follistim AQ, Gonal-f) or menotropins (Menopur).
- To prevent premature ovulation – gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist such as leuprolide acetate (Lupron Depot) or a gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist such as cetrorelix (Cetrotide)
During several weeks, the doctor will run blood tests to measure your response to ovarian stimulation medication. You’ll also have follow-up visits to the doctor to scan for a vaginal scan to monitor the development of mature follicles. Saraogi hospital, one of the best IVF hospitals in Mumbai has top doctors and staff that will make sure that you get your treatment efficiently.
It generally takes the follicles 10-14 days to mature. The doctor will inject human chorionic gonadotropin (Pregnyl, Ovidrel) to help the eggs mature faster.
2. Egg retrieval
Sedation is used during egg retrieval, usually done in a clinic or at your doctor’s office. Transvaginal ultrasound aspiration is a popular technique that involves inserting an ultrasound probe into your vagina to locate the follicles.
A needle is then guided through the vagina and into a follicle. A suction device connected to the needle removes the egg from the follicle. Multiple eggs can be removed, and studies show that the more eggs retrieved— up to 15 per cycle — the better the chances of birth.
After egg retrieval, you might have cramping. Feelings of fullness or pressure might continue for weeks because your ovaries remain enlarged.
3. Egg freezing
Shortly after your unfertilized eggs are harvested, they’re cooled to subzero temperatures to preserve them for future use. The makeup of an unfertilized egg makes it a bit more difficult to freeze and lead to a successful pregnancy than does the makeup of a fertilized egg (embryo).
The process most commonly used for egg freezing is called vitrification. High concentrations of substances that help prevent ice crystals from forming during the freezing process (cryoprotectants) are used with rapid cooling.
After the procedure
Dr. Mohit Saroagi says that patients can return to their daily lives within a week or two. You should avoid unprotected sex as it can lead to an unintended pregnancy.
If you have any of the following, contact your doctor:
- Severe abdomen pain
- Weight gain of more than 0.9 kilograms in a day
- Heavy vaginal bleeding
- Problem in urinating
- Fever higher than 38.6 C
Results
When you are ready to have a baby -the frozen eggs will be thawed and fertilized with sperm in the lab, and then the doctor will implant the mixed egg and sperm in your uterus or a carrier’s uterus.
The doctor will most likely recommend ICSI – intracytoplasmic sperm injection. ICSI is a process where healthy sperm is directly injected inside the mature egg.
Dr. Mohit Sarogi says the chances of becoming pregnant after implantation are roughly 30 to 60 percent, depending on your age at the time of egg freezing. The older you are at the time of egg freezing, the lower the likelihood that you’ll have a live birth in the future.
