Will freezing eggs lower my chances of naturally conceiving?
The simple answer is “no”. A woman’s ovaries recruit a batch or cohort of eggs each/every month. Ovarian stimulation doesn’t “use up” eggs any faster than a woman would naturally. She either “uses” those eggs in any given month, or they are lost. So, freezing of eggs does not lower a woman’s future fertility. In fact, it helps preserve (increase) the chances for success in the future.
What is AMH testing? What is the next step if my AMH levels are low or below average?
AMH stands for Antimullerian Hormone. This is a simple blood test that gives us an idea as to how many eggs a woman has remaining. The higher the AMH level, the more eggs a woman has left. I see the AMH level as a bit of a gas pedal. If the AMH level is lower, then the window for success is narrowing. Once the eggs are gone, that’s it. They are gone.
What information does the Antral Follicle Count provide?
The AMH level gives us an idea of how many total eggs remain. The antral follicle count gives us a good measure of how many eggs a woman can achieve in any given month.
How likely are you to conceive naturally in your forties?
At 40 yo even if the rest of the work-up of infertility is “normal”, then the chance of natural conception is 3%. At 43 yo, it is 1%. The risk of miscarriage also goes up steadily with advancing age.
What is a simple but complete process of egg freezing?
The active process of freezing a woman’s eggs takes about 2 weeks. On average, it is about 8-12 days of daily injections to stimulate the ovaries. Once the follicles are mature, that is when we retrieve the eggs. Once the eggs are harvested, they can then be frozen for future use. We are in essence, freezing a woman’s biological clock.
At what temperature are the eggs frozen? How long can they be frozen?
Liquid nitrogen is approximately minus 196 degrees Celsius. Eggs can be frozen for many years (decades) without any negative impact.
What are the costs of storage for the eggs?
There is an annual storage fee of a few hundred dollars. There are discounts for multi-year storage.
Does an irregular menstrual cycle mean that I will have trouble conceiving?
Women who have irregular menses are more likely anovulatory (not ovulating). This can impact the chances of conceiving. If a woman has a good number of remaining eggs, this generally does not negatively impact the ability to freeze eggs or IVF successes.
Does sexual intercourse interfere with egg amount or quality? Masturbation?
Having sexual relations or masturbation do not seem to negatively impact ovarian stimulation responses or success rates.
Is there an age restriction for IVF/Egg Retrieval? Too young, too old?
As a woman gets older, the number of eggs goes down and the quality of eggs goes down in addition to the percentage of genetic abnormalities that go up. This makes the age of eggs the single best predictor for fertility success. IVF success rates goes down steadily with advancing age. While fertility rates decline even in the ’30s, it goes down more rapidly over the age of 40yo. While there’s no absolute upper limit, certainly over the age of 43yo, the IVF success rates are quite low.
