All You Wanted to Know About Egg Freezing And Its Benefits

Egg freezing, technically termed oocyte cryopreservation, is a process in which the eggs (oocytes) are extracted from a woman, frozen, and stored for use in the future. The first instance of egg freezing was reported in 1986. Since then, this method has made dramatic progress. The chances of eggs surviving the freezing process are much higher today. It gives women the opportunity to plan their family with a greater degree of freedom.

Why Women Go For Egg Freezing?

Women prefer cryopreservation of the oocytes for various reasons:

• They are receiving chemotherapy or pelvic radiation therapy that may interfere with fertility
• They fear damage to the ovaries due to a surgery they plan to undergo
• They face a risk of premature ovarian failure due to an abnormality in the chromosomes
• They have an ovarian disease or suffer from a genetic mutation
• For social or personal reasons

Egg Freezing Process

The fertility specialist will analyze your ovarian reserve to determine the potential yield of oocytes that can be collected before the ovarian stimulation cycle. It also helps them decide on the dose of medications needed. Hormonal medications injections are given to stimulate the ovaries. After this step, the oocytes and the relevant fluid surrounding them are aspirated vaginally.

The doctor will assess the maturity of eggs, and the ideal ones are preserved. Vitrification is the preferred and latest method of preserving oocytes. It is done by ultra-rapid cooling of the eggs into liquid nitrogen, where they are stored.

Future Use:

When the woman indicates she is ready for pregnancy, the eggs are removed from the solution and placed in a warming solution. The ones that survive the freezing process are fertilized using ICSI or intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection. In this process, a single sperm is injected directly into the egg. The fertilized eggs remain and grow in the culture until the embryos are ready to be transferred into the uterus, around five days after fertilization.

Consult a reputed and leading IVF specialist in Mumbai to improve the chances of a successful pregnancy using egg freezing. Dr. Nandita Palshetkar is the best IVF doctor in Mumbai and has helped many women achieve their pregnancy goals using egg freezing.