What Is Surrogate Motherhood?

1. 🩺 General Information about the Procedure
2. 🤰 Indications to Surrogate Motherhood
3. ⭐ Requirements to a Surrogate Mother
4. 💊 Final Say

Modern methods of infertility treatment are often not properly perceived in the society, especially when it comes to egg donation and surrogate motherhood. Many people think that both procedures are immoral and will not bring anything good to the couple. Obviously, this way of thinking is unreasonable at all. Surrogate motherhood has proven to be one of the most effective methods of treating infertility. Wonder what surrogate motherhood process is? Keep reading the post – we will tell you about the procedure, its indications, and who can become a surrogate mother.

General Information about the Procedure

What is surrogate motherhood? The answer is simple – the procedure implies bearing a baby of other people. This is possible due to IVF technique and the embryo transfer into the uterine cavity of a surrogate mother. The success of the procedure is dependent on the health condition of the surrogate mother, the technical base of the clinic where the IVF is taking place, and the qualifications of doctors. Therefore, before choosing a clinic, it is necessary to read reviews of real customers, visit the clinic, talk to doctors, and specify the success rate of the procedure in a specific medical center.

Indications to Surrogate Motherhood

Surrogate motherhood is recommended to females in following conditions:

• uterus is absent;
• cervix and cavity deformation ;
• adhesions in the uterine cavity;
• high risks of miscarriage;
• serious diseases of the reproductive system;
• unsuccessful attempts of conducting IVF procedure.

Prior deciding to perform a procedure, you will need to undergo a full medical examination; only afterwards, the doctor decides whether surrogate motherhood the only option for you.

Requirements to a Surrogate Mother

A woman of 20 - 35 years old, having healthy biological children, good physical and mental health, and immune to rubella can become a surrogate mother. She shouldn’t experience miscarriages, premature birth, and Caesarean section in the past. Before signing a contract for surrogate motherhood service provision, a woman must undergo a full medical examination.

Among other requirements to a surrogate mother are the following ones:

• biological children not suffering abnormalities in development and having no congenital genetic diseases;
• a good level of somatic and mental health;
• stress-resistant mind;
• decency and honesty.

A surrogate mother must have appropriate medical documents to prove her health and the absence of infectious diseases. Before signing the agreement, a potential surrogate mother should pass several tests and consult psychologists and lawyers.

For Those Who Want to Become a Surrogate Mother

Women who are thinking about becoming a surrogate mother should be prepared to undergo a preliminary medical examination. As a general rule, you will have to cover all the expenses on the first examination yourself. By agreement, the amount spent can be later returned by the “family-customers” when they order services of a surrogate mother.

The program includes the following:

• the selection of a surrogate mother;
• synchronization of menstrual cycles of the two mothers;
• IVF or ICSI procedure;
• embryo transfer into the uterus cavity of a surrogate mother;
• pregnancy management;
• after the child birth, the specialists of the clinic are to prepare all the necessary documents for registering the baby in the registry office.

Final Say

Currently, the problem of infertility is acute to many sterile couples around the world. Fortunately, modern medicine makes it possible to solve this problem by virtue of assisted reproductive techniques. What is surrogate mother, how the procedure is conducted, who can become a surrogate mother – all the important nuances of surrogate motherhood have been outlined here.

Authors, contributors:

Ihor Osovskyi
Obstetrician-gynecologist, reproductologist

published: 04 June 2018
updated   : 24 July 2020

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