Donor Egg IVF, Houston Texas

Donor egg is a wonderful option for women who cannot use their own eggs to become pregnant. Women are born with a lifetime supply of eggs in their ovaries and after puberty eggs are ovulated during each monthly menstrual cycle. As women age, the quality of their eggs declines until they reach menopause, usually in their early forties. Most in vitro fertilization programs have a maximum age at which women can attempt IVF using her own eggs because of unacceptable success rates. Donor egg IVF is often a first line treatment for women in their forties.

Women who undergo cancer chemotherapy and/or radiation often experience damage to the ovaries. Donor egg is an option for these women. Research is underway to discover techniques to successfully freeze eggs so that these women can harvest their eggs prior to damaging treatments. IVF is attempted with these eggs after treatment completion.

Sometimes eggs will not fertilize and develop for unexplained reasons. Many specialists believe that this has a genetic basis. One advantage of IVF is that the embryologist can observe fertilization and embryo formation.

FSH is the hormone responsible for the recruitment and development of eggs within the ovarian follicles. The FSH level is usually measured on day three of the menstrual cycle and as egg quality declines, FSH levels increase. Luteinizing hormone LH levels are also measured for determination of various hormone ratios. FSH levels above 10 to 12 mcg per milliliter are indicative of reduced ovarian reserve.

A donor is used when a woman has reduced ovarian reserve A donor may be a friend or relative or she may be anonymous. Anonymous donors usually receive compensation for the services. All donors undergo thorough physical and psychological screening.

The donors and recipients menstrual cycles are synchronized with hormonal therapy so that the recipient's uterus will be ready to receive the developing embryos. The donor receives ovulation induction drugs (FSH) by injection to stimulate the development of numerous eggs. Once the eggs mature, they are retrieved under light anesthesia using transvaginal guided ultrasound retrieval with a small "needle".

The donor's eggs are combined with the partner's sperm and placed in incubators. Once the embryos are mature they are transferred to the recipient's uterus. The recipient receives hormone therapy to properly prepare her uterus.

Donor egg IVF success rates are high mirroring the age group of the donor. For example, if embryos produced from the eggs of a 22-year-old female are placed in to a 42-year-olds uterus, IVF success rates will equal those for 22-year-old females.

Dr. McWilliams offers donor egg in conjunction with the Infertility Center of Houston. There are a wide variety of donors available of different ethnicity's and physical characteristics.