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Embryo adoption is another way to be a parent

On Behalf of | Jan 5, 2018 | Family Law |

Couples who have trouble conceiving children on their own often are open to adoption. But adoption has its own problems, as the biological mother can always change her mind and keep the baby.

One couple in another state found a different solution to their nine-year infertility problem after unsuccessfully attempting other options. They wound up adopting an embryo.

What is embryo adoption?

The National Embryo Donation Center (NEDC) is located in eastern Tennessee. They perform approximately 10 percent of the country’s embryo adoption cycles. Eager patients come from all over the United States, and some even arrive from foreign countries.

The embryos are usually left over from groups harvested from couples who have experienced in vitro fertilization (IVF). The medical director and president of the NEDC claims that in a recent year, his clinic had a 53 percent success rate of deliveries per embryo transfer, a significant increase of 17 percent over the nation’s average.

He also claims that the procedure is less involved than IVF, with fewer lab tests and shots needed. It is also cheaper. As stated by the medical director, “It’s probably the most cost effective way to build a family.”

Mothers carry the embryos

As long as the mother is physically able to carry a fetus to term, there is no reason why the adopted mother cannot be the one who bears the child. This allows adoptive parents to bond with their offspring in ways that were not previously possible.

Most of his patients are in their late 30’s. But this facility transfers embryos into patients up until the day before their 46th birthdays.

Anonymous or open adoptions possible

Adoptive parents can choose to have either an open or anonymous adoption. When they choose the anonymous route, they still have access to the embryo’s donor profiles. These describe the donors’ personality and physical traits. They also list educational backgrounds, professions and hobbies.

Donors have the final say on whether it will be an open adoption at this facility. Some donor couples and adoptive parents have forged strong friendships after the births. If you decide on this route to parenthood, your Maricopa County family law attorney can draft a legally binding document that details the amount of contact, if any, and on what terms, the donor couple will have with them and their adopted child.

Source: WBIR, “Knoxville couple has baby boy through embryo adoption,” Beth Haynes, accessed Jan. 05, 2018