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Cryopreservation of Unfertilized and Fertilized Oocytes

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Fertility Preservation in Oncological and Non-Oncological Diseases

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Abstract

Cryopreservation of oocytes has become one of the most important fertility preservation techniques in females. After ovarian stimulation and follicle aspiration, oocytes are either cryopreserved fertilized or unfertilized. The method of choice, especially in unfertilized oocytes, is vitrification, a technique that allows the solidification of the oocytes into a glass-like state without the formation of ice. This enables a reliable and reversible arrest of cell metabolism at −196 °C, structural preservation of the germ cell and its genetic integrity, very good survival rates after cryopreservation and thawing and reproducible results. The live birth rate after thawing of oocytes, frozen before gonadotoxic therapies, is around 30-40% depending on the age of the woman at the time of freezing.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. UniCareD, University Cryobank for Assisted Reproductive Medicine and Fertility Protection at UniKiD Duesseldorf, University Hospital Duesseldorf, Duesseldorf, Germany

    Jana Liebenthron

  2. UniKiD, University Centre for Assisted Reproductive Medicine, University Hospital Duesseldorf, Duesseldorf, Germany

    Jens Hirchenhain

Authors
  1. Jana Liebenthron
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  2. Jens Hirchenhain
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jana Liebenthron .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Gynaecological Endocrinology and Reproductive Medicine, University Women’s Hospital of Bern, Bern, Switzerland

    Michael von Wolff

  2. Specialist Centre for Reproductive Medicine, Prenatal Medicine, Endocrinology and Osteology, amedes MVZ Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Frank Nawroth

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Liebenthron, J., Hirchenhain, J. (2020). Cryopreservation of Unfertilized and Fertilized Oocytes. In: von Wolff, M., Nawroth, F. (eds) Fertility Preservation in Oncological and Non-Oncological Diseases. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-47568-0_20

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-47568-0_20

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-47567-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-47568-0

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