|
|
|||||||||||
| Information About: | |||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
| Information For: | |||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility
Information About
Assisted Hatching
Blastocyst Culture
Cryopreservation is the process of freezing sperm or embryos in extremely low temperatures (-196°C). Viable embryos not utilized during an IVF procedure may be frozen for future transfer into the uterus. Similarly, sperm can also be frozen for future use.For more information, contact The Johns Hopkins Assisted Reproductive Technologies (A.R.T.) Laboratories. (back to top)
Johns Hopkins Oocyte Program
Some donors help save lives. Ours help create them. Believe it or not, infertility is quite common. Approximately 15% of all married couples have trouble conceiving. Fortunately, most couples who seek some sort of medical treatment eventually succeed and become pregnant. However, there are some people whose only hope is with the use of donated eggs. The decision to donate your eggs to help an infertile couple is a very serious one and should not be made lightly. Your donation would be a precious gift to infertile couples whose only chance of conceiving is through the volunteer efforts of women such as yourself.If you're a healthy woman aged 21 to 30 you may be able to help by anonymously donating eggs to a qualified infertile couple. Generous financial compensation for services. All donations are strictly confidential. For more information, contact Janice at (410) 847-3650. Frequently Asked Questions:
Some women are infertile because they were born without ovaries, had their ovaries surgically removed, or when through menopause at an early age. However, they are capable of carrying a pregnancy without difficulty if they receive eggs from another woman. In addition, there are healthy couples who are carriers of serious genetic diseases that could be passed on to their children if they become pregnant. By receiving eggs from a woman who is not a carrier of this inherited disease, the risk of passing the disease to their children is eliminated. There are also those patients who require donated eggs because they have been found to have persistently poor egg quality during previous attempts of in vitro fertilization. Many of these women are in their late 30's or 40's; some have a history of endometriosis, a condition that can cause infertility. Their chances for pregnancy are significantly improved if they receive eggs donated by a younger individual who is not infertile.Donated eggs are fertilized with the recipient's partner's sperm. Therefore, any babies that may result from this treatment would carry the genetic material of the father but not of the recipient mother. [return to FAQs] Who are candidates for egg donation? We are seeking healthy women between the ages of 21 - 30 years of age who are interested in helping other women by their participation in the program. The donor must be within 20 lbs. of her ideal body weight, a non-smoker, and free of any significant medical illnesses. She must undergo screening for inheritable diseases by completing a family history form. In addition, we routinely perform screening tests for syphilis, hepatitis A, B, and C, HIV (AIDS), gonorrhea, and chlamydia. The donor meets with our team psychologist to review the psychological aspects of egg donation and complete a psychological evaluation.The screening of each potential egg donor is expensive and time consuming; therefore, we want to ensure that every woman who is interested in becoming an egg donor is aware of the time commitment, benefits, and potential complications of the egg donation before we actually begin performing the blood tests, cultures, and psychological screening. The members of the IVF team are happy to answer any questions that you may have by telephone (410-847-3650) or in person in order to help you make the decision as to whether you wish to volunteer. We want you to be secure in your decision. Nothing is more devastating to our infertile patients than having an egg donor withdraw from participation after she has completed screening and been matched to a recipient couple. [return to FAQs] How do I become an egg donor? Women interested in becoming an egg donor are asked to complete a family medical history form and submit a recent photograph from our files. Once your completed questionnaire is received, one of the physicians in the IVF program will review it. If approved, we will contact you to set up a consultation with one of the physicians to complete your screening.You will come to our office at Greenspring Station to meet with the physicians and nurses involved in the IVF program. You will go over the medication schedule and egg collection process. You will have the opportunity to ask any questions that you have about egg donation. A physical exam, cervical cultures, and blood testing will be performed at that time. This process should take about one (1) hour to complete. After the results of the cultures and blood tests come back, an appointment will be made for the computerized psychological testing (MMPT-2)Once the results of the preliminary studies are in, you will be scheduled for a session with the team psychologist for a psychological evaluation and to discuss the psychological aspects of being an egg donor. This session should last approximately one (1) hour.One these evaluations are completed, you will be asked to come to the office for our injection teaching class. The medications you will be using to stimulate the development of multiple eggs can only be received by injection. You can bring someone with you who will be giving you the injections, if so desired.If, at any time, you have concerns or second thoughts about being an egg donor, please contact someone in our office. We are happy to address any questions or concerns that you may have. [return to FAQs] What is the egg collection process? The eggs have developed inside fluid-filled cysts called follicles. We are able to remove the mature eggs from your ovaries by using ultrasound to guide a needle through the vaginal wall directly into these cysts. We then aspirate the fluid from the cysts to collect the eggs using suction. The needle is only slightly larger in diameter than the needle used to draw blood from your arm. We try to aspirate all of the follicles on both ovaries and collect an egg from each follicle.The actual egg collection process takes approximately 30-45 minutes (depending upon the number of follicles) and is performed in the operating room. You will need to come to the operating room area approximately 2 hours prior to the scheduled time of the egg collection. You cannot eat or drink anything after midnight of the evening prior to the egg retrieval. Please do not chew gum the morning of your retrieval.Immediately prior to beginning the egg retrieval, the anesthesiologist will give you medicine through an IV to make you relaxed. Most women are not uncomfortable during the egg collection process. Your legs will be placed in stirrups. Sterile technique is used to minimize your risk of infection from the egg collection process.After the egg retrieval is completed, you will be taken to the recovery room for observation over a 2-3 hour period. You will then be released to go home. Since you received anesthesia, someone will be required to drive you home. You should be able to return to work the next day. We ask that you abstain from vaginal intercourse from 3 days before to 4 days after the egg retrieval. You will need to use a barrier contraceptive method such as condoms or a diaphragm until you get your period. After that, you may resume your current method of birth control. [return to FAQs] How will I be compensated for my participation? The Johns Hopkins IVF Program will financially compensate you for your time and inconvenience during the egg donation process. You will receive a check two weeks after the egg collection. [return to FAQs] Will I go through menopause early if I donate some of my eggs? No. The ovaries contain approximately 400,00 - 500,000 eggs at the time of puberty. Only 400-500 of these will develop to the point of ovulation during the course of the woman's childbearing years. The remaining 399,500 or so eggs undergo a process called "atresia", where they fail to mature and are gradually absorbed by the body during the time span between puberty and menopause. Because of the large number of these "spare" eggs, there is no evidence to suggest that the use of fertility medications or egg donation will decrease the egg reserves in such a manner as to lead to premature menopause. [return to FAQs] How is my identity protected? You will be assigned a code number which will be known only by the members of the IVF team. All blood studies and cervical cultures will be processed under this number, rather than your name. The surgical record will also list this number rather than your name. All records are kept in a locked file cabinet in the office. The couple receiving your eggs signs a consent form stating that they understand that the egg donation is anonymous and that it will not be possible for them or any children born through this therapy to contact you in the future. If they conceive, they will be given general information regarding your height, weight, complexion, ethnicity, and family history. [return to FAQs]
Gamete Intrafallopian Transfer (GIFT)
GIFT is a technique in which the eggs are retrieved vaginally using ultrasound guidance and placed into the fallopian tubes with sperm by laparoscopy or laparotomy. Fertilization will take place in the fallopian tubes, the natural site. (back to top)
Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI)
In the laboratory, an embryologist inserts a single sperm directly into the egg using a fine microinjection pipette. This procedure is commonly used to circumvent male factor infertility. For severe male factor infertility requiring a microsurgical epididymal sperm aspiration (MESA) or a testicular sperm extraction (TESE), Dr. Jarow, our male infertility specialist, performs the surgical extraction procedure. ASRM Fact Sheet (pdf file) on ICSI
(back to top)
Intrauterine Insemination (IUI)
 Copyright 1998 Tim Peters & Co., Inc. Peapack, NJ 07977 USA, All Rights Reserved. www.timpetersandcompany.com IUI is the process of depositing prepared sperm inside the uterine cavity. The procedure involves the washing of sperm to obtain the best quality fraction, and then injecting it inside the uterus. A thin catheter is used, connected to a syringe that contains the washed sperm. The catheter is introduced through the cervix and deep inside the uterus. (back to top)
In Vitro Fertilization
The process of in vitro fertilization involves a number of steps. These include: 1. Follicular development. This step involves the administration of medications to stimulate follicles in the ovaries to produce healthy, mature eggs. 2. Egg Retrieval. Doctors and nurses continuously monitor follicular development and at an optimal time, a doctor retrieves the eggs using ultrasound guidance while the woman is under light anesthesia. 3. Preparation of sperm and insemination of the eggs. Following semen collection, the sperm are prepared for insemination by either regular IVF or ICSI. Embryologists combine the husband's and wife's sperm and eggs in sterile petri dishes and maintain them in an environment conducive to fertilization and embryo development. 4. Transfer of the embryos.  The developing embryos are selected for transfer back to the woman's uterus, typically three days following retrieval.  Sometimes, embryos may be cultured to an advanced stage of development (called the blastocyst stage) and transferred on the fifth or sixth day following retrieval. Any remaining embryos can be cryopreserved in the lab for a future transfer if necessary.5. Pregnancy testing. Pregnancy tests are usually performed approximately two weeks after embryo transfer. The test used is a highly specific blood test for the pregnancy hormone (hCG). The concentration or level of hCG in the blood may reflect either a chemical pregnancy (the embryo is composed only of a few cells producing a small amount of hCG) or a clinical pregnancy (a fetus has been formed) where a much larger amount of hCG is secreted. The identification of an embryonic sac in the uterine cavity by an ultrasound examination confirms the presence of a clinical intrauterine pregnancy.
Transmyometrial Embryo Transfer (Towako)
The cervix can be bypassed during an embryo transfer if cervical abnormalities are present. (back to top)
Eggs are retrieved vaginally using ultrasound guidance, inseminated in the laboratory, and the resulting fertilized eggs, or zygotes, are placed into the fallopian tubes by laparoscopy or laparotomy the following day. (back to top) |
||
FAQs | Maps
& Directions | Privacy
| Intranet
| Contact
JHM | Media
Inquiries | Fund
For JHM | Science Calendar
 |
||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
|||
 |
||||||
 |
||||||