Long Island NY Donor Egg Program

How are donors selected?

First, an egg donor contacts our donor egg program" and expresses an interest in becoming an egg donor. Egg donors are paid for their services and most truly want to help infertile couples conceive. All donors undergo extensive physical and psychological screening to guarantee their suitability.  Requirements to be an egg donor include:

• Ages of 21- 32 
• Healthy weight 
• Non smoking
• No significant history for chronic medical conditions or genetic diseases
• Physically and emotionally healthy
• Must participate in and pass a screening process including a psychological examination 
• Must have transportation  

When egg donors undergo a stimulation cycle, what is required'?

Egg donors receive injections of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) which causes the recruitment and development of numerous eggs. These injections are subcutaneous and are usually administered by the egg donor at home. She must come to our practice for monitoring with estradiol hormone measurements and ultrasound evaluation.  The number of times she must come to our donor egg center is largely dependent upon how she responds to the FSH injections.   If her estradiol levels are highly elevated, she will have to come in more frequently to avoid potentially serious side effects.  This may be as many as 6 or as few as 3 visits.

Is the egg retrieval from the donor painful?

Egg retrieval is performed under anesthesia and there is rarely pain after the procedure.

How long does the process take?

The time required for an egg donation cycle is variable dependent upon many patient specific factors. First, the patient must schedule an appointment with one of our physicians to establish her eligibility for the donor egg program. 

The next step is to select a donor from the cadre that we have available or from an outside agency. Some patients choose a friend or family member as their donor.  Both donor and recipient undergo counseling and sign consent forms. 

The egg donor will undergo ovulation induction with FSH to cause the development of numerous eggs a process usually requiring 7-13 days.  During this time, the recipient receive estrogen to stimulate endometrial development, a process known as cycle synchronization. Once the eggs mature, they are retrieved and incubated from 3-5 days, after which time they are place in the recipient mother's uterus.

Are egg donors commonly used?

The use of egg donors has increased significantly over the last decade.  Many women are waiting to establish their careers before attempting pregnancy and are often aged 35 or older.  Couples are also marrying at older ages. As a women ages and her ovarian reserve declines, she becomes a donor egg recipient candidate.

How do the donor's eggs become fertilized?

Once the eggs mature, they are withdrawn from the ovarian follicles using transvaginal guided ultrasound retrieval.  Once the eggs have been obtained and separated from the follicular fluid they are prepared for fertilization. The partner's sperm is obtained by masturbation.  In some causes, sperm will be directly inserted into the eggs using intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).