[2] This procedure was performed at the Harbor UCLA Medical Center and the University of California at Los Angeles School of Medicine.
[4][5] Before this development, thousands of infertile women, single men and same-sex male couples had adoption as the only path to parenthood.
The practice of egg donation has sparked media attention and public debate, and has had a substantial impact on the field of reproductive medicine.
[4][5] This scientific breakthrough changed the possibilities for those who were unable to have children due to female infertility and for those at high risk for passing on hereditary disorders.
The combination of egg donation and surrogacy has enabled gay men, including singer Elton John and his partner, to have biological children.
This is due to the fact that all of the mentioned examinations are expensive and the agencies must first confirm that a match is possible or guaranteed before investing in the process.
[20] Each egg donor is first referred to a psychologist who will evaluate if she is mentally prepared to undertake and complete the donation process.
These evaluations are necessary to ensure that the donor is fully prepared and capable of completing the donation cycle safely and successfully.
The donor is then required to undergo a thorough medical examination, including a pelvic exam, a blood test to evaluate hormone levels(notably Anti-Müllerian hormone), infection risk, Rh factor, blood type, and drug use, and an ultrasound to examine her ovaries, uterus and other pelvic organs.
Once the screening is complete and a legal contract signed, the donor will begin the donation cycle, which typically takes between three and six weeks.
Approximately 36 hours before retrieval, the donor must administer one last injection of HCG hormone to ensure that her eggs are ready to be harvested.
This extraction must occur before ovulation, as oocytes are too small to be identified once they leave the follicle, and if the appropriate time window is missed the donation cycle will need to be repeated.
[citation needed] The egg retrieval itself is a minimally invasive surgical procedure lasting 20–30 minutes, performed under sedation by an anesthetist, to ensure the donor is kept completely pain free.
[22] According to a 2002 study, egg donations had a 38% success rate in cases of women past their reproductive years.
Such a student is arguably not making the decision to donate her eggs autonomously due to her unfavorable financial situation.
[28] According to Jansen and Tucker, writing in the same assisted reproductive technologies textbook referenced above,[28] the risk of OHSS varies with the clinic administering the hormones, from 6.6 to 8.4% of cycles, half of them "severe".
Recent studies have found that donors were at less risk of OHSS when the final maturation of oocytes was induced by GnRH agonist than with recombinant hCG.
[25] In accordance with the American Society for Reproductive Medicine guidelines, female donors are given a limit of 6 cycles that they may donate in order to minimize the possible health risks.
[20] Initial evidence suggests that repetitive oocyte donation cycles does not cause accelerated ovarian aging, evidenced by absence of decreased anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) in such women.
Both the donor and recipient agree in formal legal documents that the donation of the eggs is final at the time of retrieval, and typically both parties would like any "relationship" to conclude at that point; if they prefer continued contact, they may provide for that in the contract.
[34] In contrast, the incidence of other perinatal complications, such as intrauterine growth restriction, preterm birth and congenital malformations, is comparable to conventional IVF without egg donation.
"[35] The "justification" for payments over $5000 may include previous successful donations, unusually good family health history, or membership in minority ethnicities for which it is more difficult to find donors.
[36] Having an attorney draft a contract is recommended in order to ensure that the donor has no possible legal rights or responsibilities over the child or any frozen embryos.
[40] Concern regarding relationship quality and attachment security in egg donor families is understandable and typically stems from the absence of genetic material shared between the mother and child.
In recent years, researchers have begun to question if lack of genetic commonality between mother and child inhibits the ability to form a quality attachment.
Due to the developmental implications of forming healthy parent-child relationships in early infancy, the finding that egg donor mothers were less sensitive and structuring towards their infants raises concern about attachment styles among egg donor families, and the impacts it may have on infants' future socioemotional development.
Although egg donation is a significant, life-giving act, the companies participating in this industry still have to operate with an economical mind-set.
The most sought-after donors tend to be those who are (1) proven (i.e., have donated before and produced a pregnancy from it, proving themselves both fertile and reliable); (2) conventionally attractive; (3) healthy, with good family health histories; and (4) smart, well educated.
Donor profiles presented on agency websites are their primary marketing tool to find recipients and learn what these future consumers want.
On the donor profiles listed on the agency website for recipients, or "clients", to peruse for their desired egg match, "physical characteristics, family health history, educational attainment (in some cases, standardized test scores, GPA, and IQ scores are requested), as well as open-ended questions about hobbies, likes and dislikes, and motivations for donating"[20] are included.