Study highlights need for education campaign to encourage frozen embryo donation for infertile couples
Embargoed until 12.00 Noon Sunday 2 February 2003
A study of in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) data dating back more than a decade reinforces the success of Australia's IVF program and signals the need for an education campaign to encourage more people to donate frozen embryos to help infertile couples.
Around 90 per cent of IVF couples currently choose to discard surplus frozen embryos.
The study - conducted by Professor Gabor T Kovacs, Sue A Breheny and Melinda J Dear of the Monash IVF Clinic, Monash University - is reported in the latest edition of the Medical Journal of Australia.
Professor Kovacs says the application of embryo freezing to human IVF has revolutionised its clinical practice and helped to convert IVF from an experimental procedure to widespread practice.
In Australia, more than 7000 babies have now been born following the transfer of frozen-thawed embryos.
The advantages of using frozen embryos rather than initiating another stimulated egg pickup cycle include greatly reduced risk, cost and effort involved.
One of the potential problems of embryo freezing is the creation of a growing bank of frozen embryos. In Australia and New Zealand, in 2000, there were 71,176 frozen embryos in storage.
Because many couples complete their families or cease to have treatment while they still have embryos in frozen storage, they have a big decision to make - either donate or discard their surplus frozen embryos.
Professor Kovacs and his team set out to chart the direction of this important decision.
They studied data relating to 1246 couples who relinquished frozen embryos between 1991 and 2002 at the Monash IVF clinic.
Of these, 1116 (89.5 per cent) opted to discard rather than donate their embryos.
Sixty-six per cent of donated frozen embryos survived thawing.
From donated-embryo transfer to 50 women in 92 cycles, a 17.4 per cent pregnancy rate per transfer cycle was achieved, and 10 women delivered 11 healthy babies at term.
At the time of the audit of this study there were 98 couples on the waiting list to adopt embryos.
Professor Kovacs said the study points to a ready source of embryos - and hope - for infertile couples.
"Some studies have considered the emotional barriers to embryo donation," Professor Kovacs says.
"Having a child through IVF appears to influence parents' subsequent attitudes to their remaining embryos, so that they become less willing to donate them.
"They do not want to consider full siblings of their existing children living with other families, or the risk of unwitting sibling intermarriage.
"The uncertainty of not knowing whether they have other genetic offspring, and how this might affect their own future and that of their children, is unacceptable to them.
"Greater education and knowledge of the benefits of embryo donation may help overcome the current high disposal rate.
"Although not everyone in the community approves of embryo donation and adoption, if both the relinquishing and adoptive couples are comfortable with the arrangement, it is a cost-effective use of a valuable resource," Professor Kovacs says.
The study also examines whether State Government legislation has had an effect on couples' decisions to donate or discard embryos.
The Medical Journal of Australia is a publication of the Australian Medical Association.
CONTACT: Professor Gabor Kovacs (0409) 632 753
Judith Tokley, AMA Public Affairs (0408) 824 306