Orange County Woman Makes History by Giving Birth to the Nation's First Frozen Egg/Frozen Sperm Baby
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Business Wire
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An Orange County, Calif. woman gave birth to a healthy baby boy Wednesday evening, believed to be the first baby in the United States to have been conceived via both frozen egg and frozen sperm. Weighing in at 8 lbs, 4 oz, and 20.5 inches long, Noah Peter Domasin was born at 8:33 p.m. PST at Saddleback Memorial Medical Center.
The child's mother, 36-year-old Adrienne Domasin of Mission Viejo, Calif., achieved pregnancy through her participation in an Extend Fertility-sponsored egg freezing study at the Huntington Reproductive Center (HRC) in Laguna Hills. Domasin, unable to conceive naturally, took part in the study in order to gain access to the free in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments which HRC offered in exchange for her participation. As part of Extend Fertility's research study, Domasin froze 11 of her eggs with HRC last year and then chose to retrieve them 4 months later, instructing HRC personnel to fertilize them using frozen donor sperm. A subsequent checkup and ultrasound revealed that she was pregnant.
"I was ready to start a family and, at the age of 36, didn't have a significant other to do so with. I decided to go for it on my own, separating my desire for my own biological child from my desire to find a spouse," said Domasin.
Dr. Jane Frederick of HRC, who oversaw Domasin's fertility treatments there, will present on the milestone pregnancy and birth to the Pacific Coast Reproductive Society at its annual meeting in Rancho Mirage on April 18.
"This case illustrates and encourages the feasibility of using frozen eggs to achieve pregnancy," said Dr. Frederick. "As more women become aware of the powerful fertility preservation option available to them via egg freezing, we're likely going to see more pregnancies like this one."
Despite the unique circumstances surrounding her pregnancy, Domasin is not alone. More and more single, thirtysomething women are turning to egg freezing as a way of maintaining their reproductive options. Extend Fertility(TM), the first company to offer a comprehensive, commercial service for freezing and banking eggs, has seen a huge boom in demand since its 2004 launch, with thousands of inquiries pouring in.
Extend Fertility and its affiliated clinics have also gained significant clinical experience with egg freezing patients and have published exceptional egg survival rates of over 80%. Additionally, in the past year, 8 babies have been born from frozen eggs at Extend clinics, building upon the already 70 deliveries in Italy that have resulted from the same proprietary and patented protocol.
"Egg freezing has the potential to be as powerful as the birth control pill in giving women more control over their reproductive health - but it is critical that women become more informed about the biological clock and consider this option at a younger age," said Extend Fertility CEO Christy Jones.
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