Melbourne Fertility Specialist

Frozen eggs may be stored for many years without significant deterioration. according to Victoria law all eggs can be used before the age of 51.

Worldwide research has shown that 5-8% chance of a full-term birth for every warmed egg. This implies that the vast majority of women who store 20 eggs would be able to conceive a child with those eggs. Younger women can anticipate greater results if they preserve more eggs.

There are no guarantees in life, but for women who can’t start trying for a baby right away, freezing a good number of eggs—ideally 20 to 30—at an age when eggs are likely to be of high quality is a suitable option to increase reproductive freedom and the likelihood of a successful pregnancy in the future.

If you’re thinking about freezing your eggs and would to have an assessment with a fertility specialist, contact my rooms to schedule an appointment

Egg quality is mostly impacted by your age, so discussing egg freezing is best done sooner rather than later. Regardless of age, optimizing your health may potentially yield better results:

• Well-balanced healthy diet
• Adapt good life habits: Stop smoking, avoid alcohol consumption, reduce caffeine intake
• Reduce high exposure to plastics and toxic compounds
• Pre treatment medication such as DHEA and antioxidants may be prescribed in certain situations
• If you are overweight – Weight loss

The ovary is generally thought of as an egg bank from which the woman draws during her reproductive life. Ovarian reserve is a term that is used to determine the capacity of the ovary to provide eggs that are capable of fertilization resulting in a healthy and successful pregnancy. There are several methods of assessing the ovarian reserve that will serve as good predictors of how many eggs you are likely to produce in an egg freezing treatment cycle:

• Using an ultrasound Daniel will assess the number of antral follicles in your ovaries.
• AMH or Anti-Mullerian hormone, a blood marker of your ovarian reserve

Unfortunately, there is no Medicare coverage for elective egg freezing unless you have a medical condition that justifies freezing your eggs. I try to give my patients the best quality of care without compromising at affordable rates. What happens if I don’t use my eggs?

For women who are approaching or over 30, where getting pregnant right away is not an option, freezing eggs provides a backup plan. If you have completed your family planing and still have eggs frozen in storage you may choose to either;

• Keep your eggs in storage.
• Discarding your eggs.
• Becoming an egg donor – helping a friend or any woman struggling with infertility.

One size does not fit all. There is no magic number. Your odds can be calculated depending on your personal circumstances. I will discuss this with you at your initial appointment.

Yes, you can. You might need to freeze more eggs to maintain a good chance for a future baby. Personalised information will be discussed at your initial appointment.

Egg collection is done under Sedation, that means you will be asleep for about 15 minutes. When you wake up you might experience some discomfort depending on the number of eggs collected. Pain after egg collection is usually well tolerated with oral pain medications at home. Although in most case you will feel well enough the following day, I would advise for most to take a day off from work or other major activities to recover.

Risk for a major complication is very small is considered to be significantly less than 1% and includes risk for pelvic infection, bleeding, damage to organs and OHSS (ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome)