# Donor Egg IVF > Citation bundle for Donor Egg IVF on The Treatment Registry. > URL: https://thetreatmentregistry.com/procedures/donor-egg-ivf > Bundle URL: https://thetreatmentregistry.com/api/citations/procedures/donor-egg-ivf - Category: ivf-fertility ## Description Egg donation is the process by which a woman donates eggs to enable another woman to conceive as part of an assisted reproduction treatment or for biomedical research. For assisted reproduction purposes, egg donation typically involves in vitro fertilization technology, with the eggs being fertilized in the laboratory; more rarely, unfertilized eggs may be frozen and stored for later use. ## Overview Donor egg IVF is a form of third-party assisted reproduction in which a woman, the egg donor, provides oocytes so that another woman can conceive. For assisted-reproduction purposes it typically uses in-vitro fertilisation: the donated eggs are fertilised in the laboratory and, after several days, the most viable resulting embryo or embryos are placed in the uterus of the recipient, whose uterine lining has been prepared beforehand; surplus viable embryos can be cryopreserved for later attempts. A need for donor eggs can arise for many reasons, including advanced maternal age, early or premature menopause, being born without ovaries, gonadal dysgenesis, Turner syndrome, surgical removal of the ovaries, reduced ovarian reserve, a genetic disorder that could be passed to offspring, or repeated unsuccessful cycles using a woman's own eggs; egg donation can also help gay male couples through surrogacy. Donors may be people unrelated to the recipient, recruited by agencies or clinics and who may be anonymous, semi-anonymous or identity-release, or they may be designated donors such as a friend or relative; some clinics also run shared-oocyte programmes in which a woman undergoing IVF donates unused eggs. Before taking part, a donor is screened, evaluated by a psychologist and gives informed consent, then undergoes ovarian stimulation and egg retrieval, the same process used in conventional IVF. In United States national data, donor-egg IVF leads to a live birth in roughly 40–55% of embryo transfers, and cumulative chances across several attempts can reach around 60%. ## Peer-reviewed outcome rates - **Complication rate:** 33.20% (range 22.40–44.00%) — from 2 cited sources ## Common risks - Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) in the egg donor - Bleeding from the egg-retrieval procedure - Reactions to the hormones used to stimulate egg production - Rarely, liver failure in severe OHSS - In rare cases, severe and potentially life-threatening complications of stimulation ## FAQs ### Why IVF (in vitro fertilisation) is done? IVF (in vitro fertilisation) is a type of [fertility treatment](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/infertility/). ### How well it works? Your chance of having a baby using IVF can depend on many factors such as: ### What happens during IVF (in vitro fertilisation)? A full cycle of IVF (in vitro fertilisation) takes around 3 to 6 weeks to complete. It usually follows 6 steps, depending on the type of treatment you’re having. ### Who might need donor eggs? Reasons include advanced maternal age, early or premature menopause, being born without ovaries, gonadal dysgenesis or Turner syndrome, surgical removal of the ovaries, reduced ovarian reserve, a genetic disorder that could be passed to offspring, or repeated unsuccessful cycles using a woman's own eggs. Egg donation can also help gay male couples through surrogacy. ### Where do donor eggs come from? Donors may be people unrelated to the recipient, recruited by agencies or clinics, who can be anonymous, semi-anonymous or identity-release. They may also be designated donors, such as a friend or relative, and some clinics run shared-oocyte programmes in which a woman undergoing IVF donates unused eggs. ### How does the donor egg IVF process work? After being recruited and screened, the donor is evaluated by a psychologist and gives informed consent, then undergoes ovarian stimulation followed by egg retrieval. The eggs are fertilised in the laboratory with the partner's or a donor's sperm, and the most viable resulting embryo or embryos are transferred to the recipient's prepared uterus, with any surplus embryos cryopreserved. ### What are the success rates? In United States national data, donor-egg IVF leads to a live birth in roughly 40–55% of embryo transfers, depending on whether fresh or frozen eggs and embryos are used. Across several attempts, cumulative chances of having a baby can reach around 60%. A 2002 study found a 38% success rate in women past their reproductive years. ### What are the risks to the egg donor? The donor faces the same risks as any IVF patient using her own eggs, such as bleeding from the egg-retrieval procedure and reactions to the hormones used to induce multiple eggs, including ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS), reported in 6.6 to 8.4% of cycles. The most severe form of OHSS is life-threatening, and liver failure is a rare complication. ## Cited authors - James A Osaikhuwuomwan — Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, College of Medical Sciences, University of Benin, Benin-City, Nigeria. - Kim van Bentem — Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands. ## Sources - [The risk for the development of hypertensive complications in oocyte donation pregnancy: a systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis (DONOR IPD).](https://doi.org/10.1093/humupd/dmag006) — Human reproduction update (accessed 2026-07-13) - [Pregnancy in Older Women: Analysis of Outcomes in Pregnancies from Donor oocyte In- vitro Fertilization.](https://doi.org/10.4103/jhrs.jhrs_209_20) — Journal of human reproductive sciences (accessed 2026-07-13)