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Woman enjoying a healthy baby thanks to donated eggs

Egg Donor Information

The following is for anyone interested in egg donor information. Egg donation is the process where fertile women agree to have their eggs harvested.

The process isn't easy. The egg donor must undergo several uncomfortable steps before she will be ready to donate her eggs. This egg donor information may help a potential candidate decide if this is the right step for her. After her doctor goes over the egg donor information, she will start the egg donor process.

  • First, her normal menstruation cycle will be stopped to make it easier to be put on the schedule the doctor needs her on for the next step to begin.
  • Second, the egg donor will begin to receive an inject-able hormone cycle. She can have this done in the office or give the shots to herself at home. During this time she will be monitored until the eggs are mature and ready to harvest.
  • Lastly, it's time for egg removal. This is done by trans-vaginal ovarian aspiration, a short procedure using an ultrasound devise with a small needle attached to remove the eggs. Afterwards, there is nothing left for the egg donor to do but follow-up with her doctor.

How Are Donors Chosen?

Many interested in egg donation want egg donor information on how the donors are chosen. This is all relative to each practices' standards, but are comparatively similar. For example, the clinic may perform a full health background screening on the potential egg donor to make sure she is healthy and no history of genetically inherited ailments. Depending on the egg donor information received from her doctor, she may find there is a psychological exam required as well. Again this is to ensure there are no underlying emotional and/or mental conditions prevalent in her family or herself that could be issue later in a baby. This will also ensure the egg donor is doing this of her own free will and there are no ethical problems, such as donating multiple times all over the country just for the sole purpose of profit by her or someone else pushing her into it. All the screenings medical and psychological are fairly standard in the industry and may vary from clinic to clinic.

Understanding Risks

Egg donor information would not be complete without going over some of the risks. Egg donors should be aware that during the pre-harvest cycle certain complications could occur, though it is not the norm. One such issue is OHSS, or ovarian hyper-stimulation syndrome. This is when the egg donor experiences more stimulation in her ovaries than the doctor planned, causing them to swell with fluid. On rare occasions it is sever enough to stop the donor process. The risks, though extremely rare, are blood clots, kidney failure, and/or fluid in the lungs; though usually only mild cramping that is treated with bed rest and medication. The monitoring process only carries the risk of busing from the blood tests. The last area of complications for the donor is during the harvest procedure, such as infection, a punctured organ or heavy bleeding, but this is a rare occurrence. There is not much risk in donating eggs, nevertheless it is a good idea for anyone thinking of doing this to read all the egg donor information possible to make an informed decision to become an actual egg donor.

Last Updated: May 27, 2016