The Procedure Of Embryo Freezing – Part II

Higher-grade embryos, with regularly shaped cells and without fragmentation, are frozen at the four-to-eight-cell stage of development. They are placed in a culture inside a small container, which is then put into a freezing machine. The freezing is carried out in a way that avoids the production of large crystals that could damage the embryos. When they are thawed, care again has to be taken to make sure that they are not damaged by ice crystals and that they are spaced evenly in the culture.

A woman who is having a frozen-embryo transfer does not have to undergo ovarian hyperstimulation. If she has normal ovulation cycles she will not have to take any drugs at all, but will simply have the embryos placed into her at the normal stage in her cycle. However, if she is having donated embryos, possibly because she has been through an early menopause, she may be placed on the equivalent of a course of hormone replacement therapy to make sure that the lining of her womb is prepared. The therapy usually consists of oestrogen and pro¬gesterone which would normally ensure that the lining of the womb was rich in nutrients for the embryo to implant and develop.

Embryo transfer using frozen embryos is the same as it is for IVF using fresh embryos. It is usually a painless procedure done on an out-patient basis. The woman may be provided with progesterone during the following weeks to encourage implantation, and later the developing pregnancy, although again, there is dispute about the value of this.

There is no documented evidence that the children born from frozen embryos experience any increased risk of genetic damage as a result of it. However, follow-up studies are few and far between, are based on small numbers, and the oldest children born from frozen embryos are still too young for the long-term effects to be known fully.

Shirley M. Duran is a mother of two and an author of a variety of related lifestyle issues and topics with which has helped hundreds of mothers become pregnant. If you have any pregnancy questions for which you need answers, it is recommended to visit: http://mypregnancyquestions.info/

Copyright © Shirley M. Duran, All Rights Reserved. If you are interested in using this article make all the urls (links) active. Thank you!