Tag Archives: ivf

Surrogacy in Georgia

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Republic of Georgia is a well-known surrogacy destination and has the top reputation in the field of  fertility in the Caucasian region. Surrogacy has been legal since 20 years already and the country has been visited by a huge number of patients. We have to objectively evaluate the reason behind such a popularity and decide ourselves, whether surrogacy in Georgia is really worth a go.

 

Legislation

Surrogacy in Georgia is regulated by law and is legal for more than 20 years already. Only married heterosexual couples are allowed to participate in surrogacy programs. Collection of documents is a fairly simple process. Due to the regulation by law, birth certificate is issued as in any other case – it only includes the names of parents. No presence of a surrogate mother is required and neither she, nor an egg donor (if used) are mentioned in the document. The absence of bureaucracy in the country, contributes a lot to the positive experiences of parents.

 

Public service hall (“PSH”) is a unique service offered in Georgia, which allows to collect all of the needed documents in one space: be it birth or marriage certificate, ID card, passport and so on. The service is incredibly fast and comfortable. Receiving documents with such an ease, is usually a guarantee that parents will not face the delayed stay.

 

Surrogacy Agencies and IVF Clinics

The main part of the surrogacy agencies and clinics are located in the capital city – Tbilisi. The fact that surrogacy in Georgia is legal for more than 20 years already, accounts a lot for their successful operation. Years of experience and development has resulted in more than 10 in vitro clinics and professional surrogacy agencies. Stuff, including doctors, are very caring and professional. Very well equipped clinics are ready to lead any procedure.

Both agencies and clinics have a vast egg donor databases. However, usually, most of the donors have brown hair and eyes. If parents are strictly looking for an egg donor with blue/green eyes and blonde hair, they might have to choose the travelling egg donor from their service provider’s international database. Usually this could be travelling donors from Ukraine or Poland.

 

About the Country

Due to its attractive location, on the border of Asia and Europe, Georgia has served a huge number of patients from different parts of the world. The capital is a very interesting combination of an old and a modern city. According to the statistics,  Georgia is the world’s 5th safest place for living. Residents are known for their hospitality and most of them, apart from their mother tongue, speak fluent English and Russian.

You can see photos of Tbilisi here.

 

Now it is time to come to the conclusion listing pros and cons of surrogacy in Georgia.

 

Advantages

 

  • Affordable prices (In comparison to USA and Canada, prices are significantly lower)
  • Regulation by the law – no disputes as a result
  • Document collection is simple
  • Well equipped clinics
  • Experienced surrogacy agencies and in vitro clinics
  • Safety

 

Disadvantages

 

  • Less blonde and green/blue eyed donors (Parents can still choose a travelling donor from the international database).
  • Country is not the member of the EU

Strict legal EU protection does not apply to clinics. However, Georgia has just received the visa free travel with Schengen, which is also a great step forward to country’s recognition.

 

Verdict : Based on the experience we are happy to approve Georgia as an attractive destination for surrogacy. Prices are indeed affordable compared to the qualification and quality of the service offered – patients should definitely take the advantage of that.

 

Reasons of Using an Egg Donor

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How should parents know if it is time to start thinking about finding an egg donor? What if it is too early or what if donation is not needed at all? We will try to figure it out.

 

First of all, we have to mention that egg donation has become really successful. Procedures that use fresh embryo (! not frozen) have the likelihood of 43% to result in pregnancy.  A number of couples that want to expend their families have now the possibility to do so.

 

Situations vary. Females may experience fertility issues of several kinds. It is advisable to use an egg donor, when :

 

  • Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) level is high

In females, FSH helps to regulate menstrual cycle and produce eggs by ovaries.  Doctors measure the amount of the hormone in a blood sample. High level of FSH may mean the loss of ovarian function, menopause, polycystic ovary syndrome, chromosomal abnormality or the inability of the body to produce good quality eggs for fertilization.

 

  • Luteinizing hormone (LH) level is high

Similar to FSH, LH hormone regulates menstrual cycle and egg production. Doctors measure its amount in a blood or urine sample. Normally, levels of LH and FSH are rising and lowering simultaneously.  High levels of luteinizing hormone may also mean ovarian failure.

 

  • Anti-mullerian hormone (AMH) level is low

AMH is a substance produced by egg sacs, containing immature eggs. Blood test will reflect the remaining egg supply of a female. If the hormone level is low, the ovarian reserve is low accordingly.

 

  • Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)

PCOS is a condition when female hormones are out of balance. We have already discussed this issue and you can read more about polycystic ovary syndrome on our blog.

 

  • Females are over 40

As we have already mentioned several times, age plays one of the major roles in infertility. Females in their 40s usually have high FSH and LH hormone levels, as well as low AMH level. With age, body’s reproductive system is becoming less functional. Females over 43 years tend to use egg donors for better outcomes. Ageing of Europe is also a demographic phenomenon and is characterised by a decrease in fertility. Many couples avoid creating/expanding families until they are 40. Consequently, their chances of reproduction without assistance are decreasing significantly. Same applies for the USA.

 

  • Females have menopause

Menopause is a normal, biological process for females in their 40s or 50s. However, it stops menstrual period permanently and so does it end fertility.

 

  • Mother may transmit a genetic disease

Many couples prefer to use an egg donor in order to prevent transmitting genetic disease to a child.

 

  • Several IVF attempts have failed

As we already said, in vitro fertilization is a process of fertilizing egg with sperm outside the body, in a laboratory dish. After couples have experienced 4 unsuccessful IVF attempts and doctors think the egg quality is poor, then it’s better to consider finding a donor.

 

Egg donation is used widely by LGBT couples. Same sex male couples from all around the world as using the donation  procedure to expend their families and become parents.

 

If couples experience above mentioned issues and doctors have already advised to think about donation, then they got a reasonable motive to do so. However, with the right agency and professionals, there is nothing to worry about 🙂