Egg donation, also known as oocyte donation, makes pregnancy possible for women who might not otherwise be able to get pregnant using their own eggs, a case that is often associated with older maternal age.
The procedure is similar to standard IVF, except that the eggs are sourced from a friend or from an anonymous donor or an egg bank. The donated eggs are fertilized with the partner’s sperm in a laboratory dish and then the fertilized embryos are transferred to the woman’s uterus.
The success rate varies depending upon age of eggs, retrieval process, and quality of semen as well as the overall health of the women involved. In most cases, donors are young men and women, have a healthy reproductive system and are tested negative for hereditary diseases.