For whom the egg thaws: insights from an analysis of 10 years of frozen egg thaw data from two UK clinics, 2008-2017

PURPOSE

To better understand the characteristics of patients who returned to thaw their frozen eggs to attempt conception and their outcomes.

METHODS

A retrospective analysis of clinical records for all own egg thaw patients in two UK fertility clinics across 10 years, 2008-2017.

RESULTS

There were 129 patients who returned to thaw their eggs, of which 46 had originally frozen their eggs for social reasons and 83 for a variety of clinical, incidental, and ethical reasons (which we have called "non-social"). Women who had frozen their eggs for social reasons were single at time of freeze, with an average age of 37.7. They kept their eggs in storage for just under 5 years, returning to use them at the average age of 42.5. 43.5% were single at time of thaw, and 47.8% used donor sperm to fertilise their eggs. Women whose eggs were frozen for non-social reasons were almost all (97.6%) in a relationship at both time of freeze and thaw. They had an average age of 37.2 at first freeze and 37.6 at thaw, having kept their eggs in storage for an average of 0.4 years. Overall, there was a 20.9% success rate among women attempting conception with frozen-thawed eggs.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite widespread assumptions, many women attempting conception with thawed eggs had not initially frozen them for social reasons. Women who froze their eggs for social reasons presented distinctly and statistically different characteristics at both time of freeze and thaw to women whose eggs were frozen for non-social reasons.