Egg Donation

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Egg Donation

Egg Donation

1. Donor Medical History Review and Physical Examination (Initial Consult)

It is important to review the donor's medical history along with a physical examination to help determine if the donor is medically qualified to proceed. This is usually a 2 hour appointment at our center.

The following test will be performed at this appt.:
  • A trans-vaginal ultrasound,
  • An FDA required infectious disease blood panel test.
    • If you are not a local donor, please be sure to take an FDA Donor ID Panel kit with you so that you may re-test locally and without delay.
  • Pap smear
  • Genetic Screening (please be aware that the results may take longer to return, which will postpone medical clearance)
  • All consent forms must be signed and returned.
  • Please be sure to fill out the Initial History Interview form and signed.
  • Donors will be required to abstain from sexual intercourse as they begin the process at our office and will start taking birth control pills for 2-3 weeks.
  • Please note that if you have any of these records from within a year, you can bring a copy in and you will not have to repeat the test.

2. Medical Clearance

  • Once all the tests are back and the donor is medically cleared, we will notify both the Intended Parents (IPs) and the Agency so that they may proceed to the next step.
  • The donor will be asked to keep the Third Party Coordinators up to date on when her period starts so that our office will have a general timeline of when the IVF process will begin.

3. Legal and Psychological Clearance

  • Your Agency will be responsible to complete the contract between you and the Intended Parents as well as to have your psychological evaluation completed and sent to us, to proceed onto the Donor IVF Cycle. Intended Parents not using an Agency will be responsible for completing all the necessary documents.

4. IVF Cycle for Egg Retrieval

The following test will be performed at this appt.:
  • Once all the necessary documents are completed, we will begin monitoring the donor on her next cycle.
  • We specialize in a more natural approach to IVF, where our donors will not be over stimulated and tend to have little to no side effects.
  • The donor will come in to begin monitoring on Cycle Day 2-3 (CD 2-3).
  • The History Interview form will need to be completed and signed
  • We will re-draw the FDA required infectious disease blood panel and provide her with a set amount of medication so that donors will always have them readily available.
    • We provide all donors with a set amount of medication to eliminate any delays in treatment as the donor will not come back to monitor until the 8th or 10th day of their cycle.
    • For donors who are not local, we will send the medication to them after legal clearance so that they will have everything ready to begin their IVF treatment.
The following medications will be prescribed at this appt.:
  • Clomid 50mg 20 tabs
  • Menopur 450IU (6 vials)
  • Gonal F or Follistim 600IU (2 boxes)
  • Lupron 1 vial
  • Necon 1/35 1 pack
  • The nurses will teach all donors how to use the medication in the office, but if you are doing outside monitoring then they can provide written information and teach you over the phone. If you ever have a question about the medication or treatment, please be sure to call our office and speak with a nurse. There is an after-hours line for nurses as well: 949-887-9612. Please do not hesitate to call us if you have any questions or concerns.
  • Please be aware that there may be more medication needed depending on the cycle's progress.
  • Outside monitoring donors will be required to be monitored at our office by their CD 10 and continue until the retrieval date. In general, a normal 28-day cycle the retrieval date will be around CD 14. Please keep in mind this is just an estimated date for the donors as everyone's results will vary for when their follicles will be ready for retrieval.
  • For outside monitoring, after we receive the results, the nurses will inform the patient of her treatment plan on the same day. If no call is made, please be sure to call our office to make sure that we did receive the result and give the proper treatment plan.
  • Donors that are within 2 hrs driving distance are not allowed to monitor elsewhere as outside monitoring can complicate or delay the cycle if the results are not received on time and our priority is to provide the best results and treatment for our patients.
  • We will continue to monitor and provide medical treatment until the donor is ready for her egg retrieval.
  • IV Sedation will be offered to the donor. You can choose to decline this option if you prefer. Those who choose to use IV Sedation must adhere to the guidelines given by the nurse. Do not eat or drink anything past midnight the day before the retrieval. Please be sure to have a companion who can take you home safely after the retrieval as you may be groggy from the sedation.
  • After the retrieval, the nurses will instruct you on taking the birth control pills already given. Please be sure to follow their orders as you are at higher risk to become pregnant after the donation.
Life IVF Center