Many women today are choosing to postpone childbearing until after they have completed their education, established their careers, and/or fulfilled whatever goals they may have set for themselves. For some women, however, this decision may later result in difficulties conceiving. Because a woman’s ovarian reserve begins to decrease in her 30s, trying to have children later in life may come with challenges that cannot always be overcome without assistance. To avoid being faced with the choice of either having a baby before they’re ready or having difficulties getting pregnant in the future, many women understand the importance of early planning and are turning to egg freezing and cryopreservation as a solution to their family planning needs. Reproductive Fertility Center offers Egg freezing and storage at our Southern California clinics conveniently located in West Hollywood, Riverside, and Glendora. 

How does the Egg Freezing and Cryopreservation process work?

Females are often surprised to hear that delaying pregnancy can significantly impact their chances of getting pregnant. While males can continuously produce sperm, women are born with all of the eggs they will ever have, leading to a lesser and lesser number of eggs over time. On average, a female at birth will have over 1,000,000 eggs and by adolescence, they will lose 50% of those, and continually lose 600-800 more eggs per month depleted from their ovarian reserve. Through the help with state-of-the-art technology, Reproductive Fertility Center can help support you through the early planning of your egg preservation so when you are ready your eggs, they will be healthy and prepared for fertilization.

Egg Freezing Process

Let’s review the Egg Freezing and Preservation process when working with Reproductive Fertility Center:

• Egg Retrieval: Before the retrieval process, you will be placed on fertility drugs to stimulate the ovaries to produce multiple eggs. When the eggs are mature and ready for retrieval the fertility doctor will gently guide a needle attached to a catheter through the vaginal vall. You will be given IV sedation to help easy any discomfort. Using ultrasound guidance, we will locate each follicle and draw fluid into a test tube to retrieve your eggs. The procedure overall takes 15 minutes. After the eggs are retrieved, they will be identified by your name and a unique number where the embryologist will start the preservation process.
• Cryoprotectant Treatment: Before freezing, we will treat your eggs with cryoprotectant. This concentration ensures the protection of your eggs while they are frozen.
• Egg Freezing & Storage: Your eggs will be frozen using a process known as “vitrification”, the newest method of flash freezing. This process is closely monitored to preserve the health of your eggs. When your eggs have reached a temperature of -196 degrees Celsius, they are placed in liquid nitrogen. This cold state preserves the functionality of the eggs for years.
• Egg Fertilization: When you are ready for children, we will thaw some or all of your eggs. Once they are thawed, we will then use a technique known as ICSI that helps improve the chances of fertilization. When the eggs have developed into multi-cell embryos, a catheter is used to place one of more embryos into the uterus which hopefully results in pregnancy.

Contact our dedicated Los Angeles team online here or call our office for help 310-881-8846

Who Can Benefit from Egg Freezing? 

There are many use cases for Egg Freezing for many women. Some include:

Young Women

The best time for a woman to freeze her eggs is when she is in her early to mid 20s. This is the peak fertility period, during which a woman is likely to have a large selection of healthy eggs for freezing. The younger a woman is when she freezes her eggs, the better chance she has of them successfully fertilizing and resulting in pregnancy at a time that works best for her.

Cancer Patients

A woman can benefit from egg freezing if she has recently been diagnosed with early-stage cancer and is planning to undergo radiation or chemotherapy. These conventional cancer treatments can leave a woman infertile. However, a woman’s eggs can be frozen before treatment to ensure that healthy eggs will be available to use at a later date.

Ovarian Removal

Women with severe ovarian cysts or cancer may need to consider ovarian removal. The removal of the ovaries means that a woman will no longer be able to produce eggs naturally. If the uterus is left intact, we can use frozen eggs to achieve pregnancy when a woman is ready.

Egg Freezing Success Rates

There are many factors that go into the success rate of egg freezing. For starters, age plays a large role in a woman’s fertility, as it significantly changes in her 30’s. We have seen broadly that younger women have a higher success rate when using egg freezing and cryopreservation. 

While age is a primary factor, there are some other determinates that affect the overall success rate including menstrual health, uterus health, existence of fertility issues. However, state-of-the-art technology has been improving over time which has also given a significant stride in egg freezing treatment.

Cost of Egg Freezing Services

The cost of egg freezing varies depending a number of factors but costs around $15,000. This fee includes all the testing, medication, and storage for your eggs. For more information contact our dedicated office staff at 310-881-8846

Schedule an Egg Freezing Consultation with a Southern California Fertility Clinic

Whether you are looking for solutions to preserve your eggs now or later, there is a high importance around early planning. Our state-of-the-art clinics located in West Hollywood, Riverside, and Glendora are prepared to get your started on your fertility journey today. Contact us online or call us directly at 310-881-8846 to get started!

‍