A substantial increase in the number of donor egg cycles in the United States from 2000 to 2010 was accompanied by an increase in good perinatal outcomes, reported investigators at the conjoint meeting of the International Federation of Fertility Societies and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.
A review of data from 93% of all fertility centers in the United States showed that the annual number of reproductive cycles using donor eggs grew from 10,801 in 2000, to 18,306 in 2010.
The trend was accompanied by increases in the proportion of cycles using frozen rather than fresh embryos, as well as elective single-embryo transfer (eSET) vs. multiple transfers.
The data show that single-embryo transfers were associated with a more than twofold improvement in the odds of a good outcome, compared with multiple transfers, and that embryo transfer at day 5 vs. day 3 was associated with a smaller but still significant increase in the chance of a favorable outcome.
Factors associated with lower likelihood of success included tubal- or uterine-factor infertility, and race/ethnicity with non-Hispanic black women having about half the number of successful pregnancies as non-Hispanic white women had.
This study was conducted before the advent of the biggest change in egg donation in its almost 20 year history: the use of frozen eggs. RPMG is fortunate to be the sole group in Southern California able to provide our patients with frozen eggs from Donor Egg Bank USA.
Cycles using frozen eggs are quicker and less expensive than traditional egg donation in a fresh cycle. For more information please check out our page on Frozen Donor Eggs.