COULD EGGS BE FROZEN?

The practice of egg freezing, also referred to as mature oocyte cryopreservation, is one way to preserve a woman's future fertility. The ovarian eggs that are harvested are frozen, unfertilized, and kept for future use. An egg that has been frozen can later be thawed, fertilised, and implanted.

There is a social trend today to put off having children by freezing eggs for non-medical reasons. This delay is the result of elements related to the advancement of a professional career, unstable economic conditions, or the lack of an ideal partner. As a result, these women may experience age-related infertility when trying to conceive, for which egg freezing is suggested as a remedy.

A healthy, fertile woman can store her eggs and use them at a later time to become pregnant. In order to increase the likelihood of future pregnancies, it should ideally be performed when the woman is younger and under 35 years old, but in practice, people arrive at an older age. Age-related quality declines have an impact on pregnancy rates.

STEPS OF EGG FREEZING: 1. The ovaries are stimulated, multiple eggs are produced using gonadotropin injections, and the subsequent serial ultrasound monitoring of egg development is then performed. When the eggs are ready to be released, hcG/GnRH agonist injections are given.

2. Once eggs are matured, they are retrieved under sedation or general anaesthesia under ultrasound guidance using a needle guided through the vagina. A suction device is connected to the needle to aspirate eggs.

3. The eggs are immediately cooled to below zero degrees after being collected, keeping them there until they are frozen. This process, which prevents the formation of ice crystals during freezing, is known as vitrification. Then, until they are required, the frozen eggs are kept in liquid nitrogen.

RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH EGG FREEZING Ovaries can become painful and swollen after receiving stimulation injections, a condition known as ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome. The patient complains of nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, bloating, and abdominal pain. This occurs either after egg retrieval or during the stimulation phase. Treatment is based on how severe the syndrome is. Pain management and adequate hydration are first-line treatments. When retrieving eggs, a needle used for the same purpose may puncture blood vessels, leading to bleeding and infection.

EGG-FREEZING SUCCESS RATE Although nearly 90–97% of eggs survive freezing and thawing, egg survival does not ensure a successful pregnancy. During egg retrieval, the quality of the eggs cannot be assessed, and age can affect the overall success rate. When women freeze their eggs in their 20s or early 30s, the live birth rate can reach 85%. However, it drops to 70% for women who are 36 years old or older at the time of freezing.

The likelihood of pregnancy tends to increase with egg retrieval because there may be a variety of embryos to choose from. Age at the time of egg freezing and embryo transfer will affect the risk of miscarriage. Studies have not discovered a higher risk of congenital defects or problems during pregnancy when using embryos created from eggs that have been stored frozen for a long time.

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