Learn More about Third-Party Reproduction at Aspire HFI in Houston
If you have questions about third-party reproduction, contact Aspire Houston Fertility Institute. Our team is ready to meet you right where you are in your fertility journey.
Third-party reproduction involves using donor sperm, donor eggs, or a gestational carrier to grow your family. While navigating third-party reproduction may seem overwhelming at first, Aspire HFI is here to guide you through every step of this journey.
Donor Sperm
Some patients will need donor sperm to move forward on their path to parenthood. Donor sperm is most commonly recommended in cases where the male partner has a medical condition that has severely damaged sperm production, or in situations where there is no male partner (single female, same-sex female relationship, or transgender partners). Whatever the case may be, our team of specialists regularly care for patients in every situation and stage of life.
If your provider recommends using donor sperm, our third-party office will help you contact national sperm banks and discuss what you need to do before you begin treatment. We make it easy for patients to navigate the entire process from start to finish.
Choosing the right donor sperm sample is crucial; patients should be aware of all the medical and genetic implications of their choice before they make it. Our fertility specialists can assist you in determining what to look for in an ideal sperm donor, and once you pick your sample, perform intrauterine insemination (IUI) or in vitro fertilization (IVF) to help you conceive.
Donor Eggs
Some individuals need to turn to egg donation to help them get pregnant, either because they are no longer able to produce eggs on their own, or there is no female partner. Unlike men, who can consistently produce sperm, women are born with all the eggs they will ever have in their life. With age, the quality and quantity of these eggs declines. Whether the issue is advanced reproductive age or prematurely diminished ovarian reserve, fertility treatments are designed to maximize each woman’s fertility potential each month. However, some women may have ovarian reserve issues so severe that they will need to turn to donor eggs (oocytes) to help them become parents.
At Aspire HFI, we are proud to be one of the few practices in the entire country and perhaps the world to maintain its own donor egg bank. Having an in-house egg bank means that we’ve already identified prospective egg donors, screened them, and retrieved their eggs. Our donor egg bank offers Aspire HFI patients an opportunity to become pregnant within a few short weeks of their consultation.
At many fertility centers, the standard approach for patients in need of egg donation involves recruiting anonymous egg donors. These donors are required to synchronize their schedules so that the donation can occur just before the planned embryo transfer for the recipient. This process can be quite complicated, often taking anywhere from a week to several months, or even years. After this, there is also the need for ovarian stimulation and egg retrieval.
We understand that our patients have waited long enough to become parents. We aim to minimize additional delays, ensuring that the egg donor can move forward with stimulation in a timely manner, rather than waiting an extra 6 to 12 months.
Egg donation is a very effective fertility treatment. If performed correctly, pregnancy rates can be as high as 60% to 70% per cycle, or even higher. The reasons why such outcomes are so high is because egg donors are specifically recruited while they are in their 20s when their egg quality is expected to be high. Even when a patient reaches her mid to late 40s (or even 50s), there are highly effective treatment options available to her.
If you feel like you are in need of egg donation or have questions about whether or not this is right for you, schedule a consultation with us and ask your provider which option is best for you.
Gestational Carriers
Gestational surrogacy is a fertility treatment where embryos that are created through in vitro fertilization (IVF) are transferred into a woman unrelated to the pregnancy. She carries and delivers the baby for the intended parent(s).
Surrogacy is most commonly needed when patients:
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Are born without a uterus (or a severely abnormal uterus)
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Have a medical condition so serious that becoming pregnant may irreversibly damage or threaten a patient’s life
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Have multiple failed IVF cycles
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Are in same-sex male relationships
Our team of specialists at Aspire HFI is highly trained in coordinating all the moving parts necessary for a successful gestational surrogacy treatment cycle.
Over the years, we’ve established good relationships with multiple highly reputable surrogacy agencies. Agencies are very important because both our clinic and the agency will serve as “home base” for patients as they move through the screening, legal, fertility treatment, obstetric, and delivery process. We’ll work with you and the agency to make sure that a prospective surrogate is not only someone who has had healthy pregnancies in the past but is also a medically safe choice for you.
If you think you may need a surrogate to help you on your path to parenthood, contact Aspire HFI for a consultation today.