Do you want to postpone your pregnancy yet preserve your fertility? Oocyte Vitrification is one of the highly recommended assisted reproduction technologies that involves preserving fertility for a woman by freezing the oocytes or eggs at sub-zero temperatures for a long time.
What is Oocyte Vitrification?
At Apollo Fertility, we have state-of-the-art infrastructure and advanced lab facilities for conducting the oocyte vitrification procedure. Our team of skilled and experienced doctors examines and extracts the oocytes for vitrification after treating them with cryoprotective additives. The cryoprotective additives (CPA) prevent the formation of ice and hence prevent cryodamage. With oocyte vitrification, women can even become pregnant or choose to conceive upon reaching middle age without experiencing issues related to oocyte reserve depletion.
Oocytes undergo a solidification process called vitrification, during which they are treated with cryoprotective agents and immersed in liquid nitrogen. Follicular stimulation is performed prior to the extraction of the oocyte for preservation in order to obtain high-quality eggs or oocytes.
Procedure for Oocyte Vitrification
Our expert doctors undergo a complete assessment and checkup before starting the procedure. We make sure that the patient’s body is thoroughly prepared for fresh retrieval of the highest quality egg for preservation. Here is the procedure we follow at Apollo Fertility for successful oocyte vitrification:
- Follicular Stimulation: This is the first step for the vitrification of oocytes. It involves the injection of hormones around the ovaries to stimulate follicular production.
- Egg cell retrieval: This process involves the retrieval of the egg cells after the follicular stimulation process is complete. There is a complete examination of the oocyte before initiating the preservation process. The eggs are not fertilized with sperm but are vitrified.
- Egg vitrification: Once the eggs are of appropriate size and quality, it is mixed with cryoprotective agents and preserved in liquid nitrogen. The cryoprotective agent prevents the formation of ice, and it is kept at a temperature of -196°C or -321°F.
The vitrified eggs can be retrieved later for in-vitro fertilization. The eggs will be thawed and fertilized with sperm for the development of an embryo, which is later transferred to the uterus.
Who is the Oocyte Vitrification Procedure Recommended?
Pregnancy is a roller coaster ride, and the responsibility of becoming a parent brings changes in a way one cannot even anticipate. However, with the biological clock ticking, it’s not always easy to get pregnant or conceive naturally after a certain age. Here is when oocyte vitrification is highly recommended:
- Preserving eggs for later use: Pregnancy rates are highly affected by the age of a female’s eggs and overall oocyte reserve. If you are not ready to get pregnant young, you can prolong your fertility by vitrifying young eggs for future use.
- Patients about to undergo treatment: Rigorous and complicated medical treatments like chemotherapy affect fertility potential in the future. The vitrification procedure allows patients to preserve their oocytes before enduring treatments that have the potential to impact oocyte quality.
- In-vitro fertilization: The vitrified egg is later thawed and fertilized with the sperm for in-vitro fertilization for embryo production. It is recommended for patients at risk of hyperstimulation and hence unable to complete a fresh cycle.
Results and Success Rate of Oocyte Vitrification
Numerous factors come into play that overall determine the success of the oocyte vitrification process. The main advantage of the oocyte vitrification process is it does not produce ice crystals and hence has an almost 97% chance of successful oocyte freezing.
You can request an appointment easily at Apollo Fertility, Kondapur, for a consultation by calling 1860-500-4424.
In the slow freezing process, the egg is slowly cooled during this oocyte preservation procedure, and the cooling continues until the egg attains the final keeping temperature of -196°C. The vitrification is “Flash freezing” instantly cools the oocyte to -196°C, making it glass-like or vitrified.
It is one of the best ways to postpone fertility. If you are planning to start a family later in your 30s, oocyte vitrification is highly recommended. The process of cryopreserves oocyte and keeps it viable for years.
Yes, it might be required for the maturation of the eggs or oocyte so that it can be successfully retrieved from the ovary.
It is best to visit good fertility doctors at Apollo Fertility Clinic. Most doctors recommend oocyte vitrification for the IVF process. The oocyte can be vitrified now or it can be extracted just before IVF.
The female ovary is stimulated with hormones for fresh follicle production. This helps in achieving eggs of good mature size and it is retrieved by doctors. The andrologist stores it in liquid nitrogen for the vitrification process after adding cryoprotectant.
