Egg Donor Information
What is involved?
Screening will be done—psychologically, medically and reliability will need to be established.
Please see the separate page on screening in the packet.
Once matched with a recipient:
It takes two menstrual cycles to accomplish a donation cycle. You will take 4-6 weeks of inject-able medications (a tiny needle, like a diabetic does insulin injections) in order to produce higher number of eggs. You will have 4-5 Ultrasounds and blood tests done for monitoring during a two week time period. You will then take 1 Intra-muscular injection to release your eggs and have an egg retrieval procedure two days later. This is done in our office under conscious sedation (IV pain meds given). You will need to take this day off work or school.
Risks involved?
The incidence of infection with the egg retrieval procedure is <1%. We give antibiotics to prevent infection. There is a 3 in 1000 chance of an accidental puncture of the bowel, bladder or blood vessel during the egg retrieval procedure. We do the procedure by Ultrasound, so it is highly unlikely that this would happen. Ovarian hyper stimulation syndrome can occur in donors. This is when you respond too well to the fertility medications and your Estrogen level gets too high. You can become bloated, dehydrated and have abdominal pain. We do frequent monitoring to try and prevent this from happening, however, on the first cycle, it is difficult to predict a donor’s response to medications ahead of time. Ovarian hyper stimulation is most common in women taking fertility drugs that are also pregnant. We are not trying to achieve pregnancy in donors so therefore, it is less common. Pregnancy in donors is another risk, since most donors do not desire to achieve a pregnancy. Birth control pills can be used for one of the two menstrual cycles needed for the donation process. The second cycle alternative birth control (barrier contraception or abstinence) should be used to prevent pregnancy.
Financial Compensation:
If you are able to proceed through the entire donor cycle and we retrieve at least 4 eggs that are mature, you will be compensated $3000. If The Fertility Center cancels your cycle (low number of eggs growing, ovarian hyper stimulation risks, Estradiol levels drop or premature ovulation of the eggs), you will be compensated $250. If you over stimulate and we cancel the cycle, you can try again with a lower dose of medication and most donors are able to donate with the second attempt. If you withdraw from the program, take your medications incorrectly, fail to be reliable with appointments or your lab testing is abnormal, NO FINANCIAL COMPENSATION WILL BE GIVEN.
Please contact our office if you have any questions regarding this information. We will go over more specific information and instructions at your nurse consultation appointment in the screening process.