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Women who wish to become mothers face increasingly complex challenges, complicating the path to pregnancy. From suffering conditions affecting fertility to the rising age for having children, many women and couples find it difficult to achieve pregnancy despite their efforts.
Reproductive medicine has advanced significantly over the decades, offering solutions for these patients. Techniques like egg donation enable pregnancy when the quantity and quality of a woman’s own eggs are not optimal. At IVI, the Perfect Match 360º program ensures the selection of the best donor to achieve the goal of having a baby with the highest guarantees. In this article, several of IVI specialists explain the details of this program and address common questions about egg donation treatments.
Egg Donation: A Path to Motherhood
Egg donation sometimes raises doubts, but it represents a highly effective solution, particularly for women with complex diagnoses, allowing them to fulfil their dream of motherhood. As we will see, success rates are exceptionally high, making this technique a choice for many patients. Each year, hundreds of German women visit IVI clinics to become mothers through egg donation, with nearly 3,500 treatments performed for these patients in the past five years.
Dr. Jakob Doblinger, a gynaecologist at IVI Valencia, explains:
“The first step is an accurate diagnosis that considers all factors related to the woman and her partner (if applicable), to create a fully personalized protocol. Another essential step for the success of this technique is donor selection.”
Dr. Jacob Doblinger adds:
“Success rates are high thanks to rigorous donor testing, genetic compatibility testing with the patient, mutation analysis, and the use of Artificial Intelligence, which enables selecting the best embryo for transfer with 90% accuracy.”
Specifically, the success rates for egg donation treatments at IVI clinics reach 99% after three attempts.
Selecting the Best Donor with Perfect Match 360º
Egg donation is a selfless act that helps couples and women who desire to have a child. At IVI, they are highly committed to the trust their patients place in them, ensuring a meticulous donation process that meets all legal and quality requirements.
Perfect Match 360º is an advanced program that guarantees not only maximum compatibility between donor and patient but also the closest possible physical resemblance. This innovative technology selects the most suitable donor based on the following criteria:
Phenotypic Characteristics
Eye and hair color, height, body type, blood type, and Rh compatibility are taken into account during the selection process. IVI has one of the largest egg banks in the world, enabling them to cater to diverse phenotypes.
Genetic Analysis
IVI performs a Genetic Compatibility Test (GCT) on all donors, which can detect up to 600 genetic diseases. In the case of heterosexual couples, the male partner can also undergo this test. If a sperm donor is used, he will also have undergone the same testing.
Biometric Scan
A critical step in donor selection is the use of Biometric Scan software. This 3D facial recognition system converts a facial image into an algorithm that detects 12,000 facial points and their distances. This ensures the donor selected closely resembles the patient.
The Joy of Motherhood Through Donation
Becoming a mother through egg donation often evokes mixed feelings among patients. While the idea of a donor may raise questions, the desire to have a child is incredibly strong.
Dr. Nina Wegmann, a gynecologist at IVI Madrid, says:
“We recognize and understand the emotional burden accompanying months of trying to conceive, which is why our priority is to provide a supportive environment and gather detailed information.”
At IVI, emotional support from specialists in psychology and infertility is key at every stage of the process.
This is reflected in the experience of Sofía, a patient at IVI Madrid, who needed specialized support to undergo treatment with donor eggs.
“In those sessions, I could vent my worries, cry, and address countless doubts and feelings that gradually fell into place, like the calm after a storm. Eventually, I realized there was nothing shameful about what I was experiencing. I wouldn’t be a ‘lesser’ mother for accepting another woman’s egg. I understood that love is so immense, so profound, and so difficult to explain, that it has nothing to do with genetics, blood, or even conceiving and giving birth to a child. When I understood that donation was an opportunity, not a second-rate solution, I started living. I breathed deeply, and I knew — truly knew — I was ready. Now, looking into my child’s eyes, feeling their hand on my chest or their touch on my face, hearing their breath while they sleep, consoling their cries—nothing else matters. My child is mine.”
Similarly, Isabel, a patient at IVI Valencia, shares how she overcame the pain of knowing that, despite her youth, she could not become a mother with her own eggs.
“My eggs weren’t facilitating the reproductive process, making it very hard to achieve what we so deeply desired. People say the future mother may suffer, experience rejection, or feel afraid of using this technique. I focused on my goal — to become a mother. I carried my daughters in my womb. I can assure all women in this situation that these fears will fade. In the future, you won’t even remember that the eggs weren’t yours. When you see your baby, everything else will disappear. Your children will adore you, and you must fight for that.”
How is the Donor Selection Process Conducted?
IVI has one of the largest egg banks in the world, but this does not preclude them from implementing a rigorous donor selection process.
Dr. Sandra Haitzinger, a gynecologist at IVI Mallorca, explains how this process is carried out:
“To ensure that the strictest medical criteria are met, only donors who complete all stages of the selection process are accepted. While the process is 100% anonymous, it is also fully traceable from beginning to end. We conduct analyses, genetic tests, and mental health evaluations, among other screenings.”
Egg donor candidates must be between 18 and 34 years old. IVI has a meticulous selection process to ensure suitability.
First Appointment
The first step is an interview to get to know the donor candidate. IVI accepts women of all nationalities and phenotypes into the egg donation program, based on the needs of each clinic. The primary criterion is that they meet the demands of the patients.
During this visit, candidates complete a detailed questionnaire and undergo a thorough interview to determine if they will be admitted into the program.
Second Appointment: Psychological Evaluation and Medical Tests
To both evaluate and guide donor candidates, a specialized psychologist at IVI conducts an interview to assess mental health. Additionally, they perform a comprehensive gynecological assessment, genetic testing, karyotype analysis, and screening for monogenic diseases. The latter allows them to identify genes that could cause inheritable diseases.
They also carry out a series of medical tests:
- Karyotype
- Genetic Analysis
- Blood Tests
- Ultrasound
- Gynecological Examination
Natural Cycle Protocol for Egg Donation Patients
At IVI, they have implemented the natural cycle transfer protocol in all their clinics for egg donation patients and other profiles. This approach takes advantage of the natural growth and stimulation of the endometrium by the patient’s own hormones during a natural cycle, eliminating the need for hormone replacement therapy.
Using the body’s own hormones, the endometrium is prepared for embryo transfer. This protocol offers several benefits:
- Reduced risk of obstetric complications, such as preeclampsia
- Lower risk of cesarean delivery and postpartum hemorrhage
- Reduced medication use, as estrogen administration is eliminated and progesterone use is minimized
By reducing medication, this approach is also more cost-effective without additional expense compared to other protocols.
Frequently Asked Questions About Egg Donation Treatments at IVI
Below, we address some of the most common questions patients have about egg donation:
Will My Baby Look Like Me?
The Perfect Match 360º technology ensures maximum compatibility between donor and patient while also striving for the greatest possible physical resemblance. This advanced software uses Artificial Intelligence to identify up to 12,000 facial points, combining this data with information such as hair color, eye color, body type, and height.
Additionally, epigenetics plays a fundamental role in pregnancies involving donated eggs. The uterine environment during gestation can influence and modify genetic information, potentially affecting physical traits.
What Patient Profiles Benefit From Egg Donation?
There are several patient profiles for whom egg donation treatment is necessary. First, there are women aged 35 and older, whose age leads to a decline in both the quantity and quality of their eggs.
Another category includes patients who have experienced repeated in vitro fertilization (IVF) failures, premature ovarian failure, or have undergone ovarian surgery.
Lastly, there are patients whose eggs inherently have poor quality due to hereditary conditions or those who have undergone radiotherapy or chemotherapy treatments, which can adversely affect fertility.
María, a 37-year-old IVI Mallorca patient with stage IV endometriosis, reflects on her experience: “It’s the first thing a woman over 35 should consider if she wants to be a mother because, had I done so, my daughter might have arrived sooner.”
María shares her initial concerns: “She won’t have my blood, she won’t be mine, she won’t look like me…” However, after having her daughter through egg donation, her perspective shifted: “Being a mother is about raising, caring for, worrying about, and protecting your child. If you truly want to be a mother, that desire takes precedence over everything else—fears, frustrations… You just have to want it and trust the professionals supporting you.”
What Does the Treatment Involve for the Patient?
Treatment with donated eggs follows the standard in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure, with the only difference being that the patient does not provide her own eggs. Here’s how the process unfolds to achieve the goal of having a child:
- First Visit: A comprehensive medical history review and gynecological examination are conducted. For heterosexual couples, a sperm analysis is also performed.
- Donor Assignment: Using Perfect Match, the most compatible and physically similar donor is selected.
- Patient Preparation: Although ovarian stimulation is unnecessary, medication is prescribed to optimize the chances of embryo implantation.
- Embryo Transfer: A specialist schedules the transfer, a painless procedure that requires no anesthesia and allows the patient to resume normal activities within hours.
- Pregnancy Test: Patients return to the clinic for a blood test measuring hCG levels to confirm pregnancy.
Can the Treatment Be Done From Another Country?
For egg donation treatments, the only appointment requiring the patient’s physical presence is the embryo transfer. All other consultations with the specialist can be conducted online. Tests and monitoring are coordinated with the patient’s regular doctors in their home country, ensuring seamless treatment management.
IVI provides support teams fluent in the patient’s native language (all of them? Or do you mean German here?), facilitating communication and offering prompt assistance whenever needed.
How Is Donor Sample Traceability Ensured?
In Spain, donation is anonymous as mandated by law. Thus, recipients cannot know the identity of their donor, and donors cannot know the identity of the recipient.
Spain also complies with European regulations regarding unequivocal donor and sample identification through the Single European Code (SEC) system. This data is recorded in the SIRHA platform, managed by the Spanish Ministry of Health. The platform not only generates the SEC codes for each sample but also includes the National Donor Registry, the National Donation Registry, and the National Biovigilance System. This ensures comprehensive tracking, monitoring, and care for donors, the cycles in which their samples are used, and any potential clinical events involving donors, patients, or their offspring.
How Long Does Egg Donation Treatment Take?
At IVI, there are no waiting lists, thanks to having one of the largest egg banks in the world. This allows them to provide access to the most common phenotypes, meeting patients’ needs in the shortest possible time.
Once a donor is selected, medical tests are conducted, and the results are cross-checked with the donor’s data to finalize the assignment.
Generally, after donor assignment, the treatment duration ranges from one and a half to two months.
If you are interested in the Donor-Recipient Matching Process and the Perfect Match 360º technology and have more questions, you can contact IVI without any obligation. Simply fill in the contact form in their clinic profile and the clinic coordinators will get back to you with personalized message.
