Breakthrough technology delivers first Michigan baby born from previously frozen egg

The first Michigan baby was born in July, 2010 using new technology that allows human eggs to be successfully frozen, thawed and fertilized during In Vitro Fertilization (IVF).

The first Michigan baby was born in July, 2010 using new technology that allows human eggs to be successfully frozen, thawed and fertilized during In Vitro Fertilization (IVF). And five other women are well into their pregnancies via the same technique. Egg freezing technology could help cancer patients and young women manage their fertility options and older women could have children with donor eggs despite their own decreased fertility. Ultimately, this empowers women to have more control over their ‘biological clock’. Further, people with concerns about storing embryos after an IVF cycle will be relieved to have the option to store frozen eggs, and then later thaw and fertilize one or two at a time.

Dr. Michael Mersol-Barg, Director of Center for Reproductive Medicine and SMART Labs in Birmingham, is the infertility specialist who brought this technology to the Detroit area. He calls the new freezing and banking of eggs “the future of IVF. ” He added that “now women and couples will have more reproductive choices and IVF procedures will be streamlined. Women who must undergo chemotherapy or have other medical issues and those who want to postpone motherhood can now safely bank their eggs and have their own biological children later. Women who can’t use their own eggs will be able to use frozen donor eggs selected from SMART Labs’ egg bank, which is the only frozen egg bank in Michigan.

Because their high water content causes damaging ice formation during freezing, eggs have not been able to be conventionally stored in the ways that sperm or embryos have. That monumental problem has recently been solved with the development of “vitrification” – a procedure that extracts the water and replaces it with a solution that safely freezes the egg to a glass-like state. When the egg is thawed, it is then fertilized, developed into an embryo and transferred into the woman’s uterus.

The 7 pound 13 ounce boy born this July was delivered without complication and continues to thrive. The 5 other women who underwent IVF with frozen eggs are on the road to delivery.

UPDATE on 2/1/11: Over twenty babies have now been born using frozen eggs. Dr. Mersol-Barg and his team are thrilled to offer this proven technology as another option to build families.