Al Arabiya English told experts that there is a “significant” increase in the number of UAE women opting to freeze their eggs amid relaxed law changes, changing societal attitudes towards fertility treatment, and more women delaying their plans to start a family.
Fertility clinics and IVF specialists nationwide have reported an increase in women seeking information about the procedure and opting to preserve their fertility.
Dr. Yasmin Sajjad said that the growing demand for egg freezing is because it offers an opportunity for women to have a child who is not in a condition to start a family later on in their life “when their natural fertility may have declined.”
She told Al Arabiya English that there are many other reasons for this growing demand.
Covid -19 led to a ‘surge in egg freezing’
Though there has been a rise in the number of women socially freezing those eggs, a significant point was noted post the Covid-19 pandemic.
The doctor explained that the ” Pandemic made it harder for women to find a partner, and this heightened their concerns about starting a family, leading them towards the option of egg freezing,” which also brought instability and uncertainty to many women. Hence egg freezing allowed them to ‘ buy time’ before meeting the right partner.
Besides, she also said, “With the introduction of social egg freezing, women feel less pressure to rush their careers or to find a partner.”
Woman’s age of egg freezing
As the age of women increases, the number and quality of eggs decrease. Therefore, egg freezing is usually offered to women under the age of 38 years to allow them to have healthy and genetically related children later in life.
Procedure for freezing eggs
Women’s eggs are extracted, frozen, and stored during the procedure. Later when she is ready to become pregnant, the eggs can be melted and fertilized into embryos. Then the embryos are transferred to the uterus at a later stage.
UAE law changes in egg freezing:
On December 19, 2029, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan declared the new IVF Law, paving the way for women to freeze their embryos for at least five years.
The new IVF, which came into effect on January 1, 2020, overruling the old IVF Law, allowed fertility centers to freeze human embryos and fertilize eggs and sperm. Under the Old IVF law, it was illegal to freeze human embryos. Only unfertilized eggs could be frozen.
Unmarried women can freeze eggs n UAE
The new IVF Law also permits unmarried women to freeze their eggs for five years, which is also extendable upon request.
Make Abu Zant, the co- four der of Ovasave fertility clinic, said that the law ” created great strides for fertility preservation” in the UAE.
He told Al Arabiya English: ” This is extraordinary progress offering plenty of time to women to figure out their life and family plans without worrying about their fertility declining.”
Challenges with freezing eggs
According to Destino, there are some challenges to freezing eggs. One of them is cost. Freezing eggs can be expensive, and some women cannot afford it, so there is no current pressing need, such as the start of chemotherapy for cancer treatment. It is an elective procedure that many people might need to consider.
New technology advances in egg freezing
Dr. Sajjad told Al Arabiya English that “the older methods were using the slow freezing technique, where only 60 percent of eggs survived being frozen and then thawed”, but “Vitrification” was the game changer, increasing egg survival rates by around 90 percent.”
In addition, Abu Zant said some clinics are utilizing experimental treatments like platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and stem cells, which have shown promoting results in improving egg-freezing success rates.
“These innovations aim to rejuvenate the ovaries and enhance the quality of eggs, leading to increased chances of successful fertility preservation.”
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