Egg freezing and social egg freezing allow young women to freeze their eggs making them available for future in vitro fertilization. Thus the wish to have a baby can be realized even at an advanced maternal age. Egg freezing gives women the option to postpone their family planning. 

However, social egg freezing is prohibited in Austria. 

In  Austria, oocytes  may only be retrieved and stored if there is a risk of  losing the ability to reproduce  due to a physical condition or medical treatment (e.g. chemotherapy). 

Oocytes  may not be cryopreserved merely for  reasons of simpler family planning. 

In  Austria, medical necessity is a prerequisite. This is given in these cases, among others: 

• ovarian cysts  or  endometriosis: if  parts of the ovary  need to be surgically removed. 
• treatments  that  affect the ovaries. 
• autoimmune diseases such as diabetes mellitus or Hashimoto thyroiditis. 
• cancers  where  chemotherapy or radiotherapy will damage the eggs  or where the ovaries need to be  removed. 

First we see you for an  initial consulation. Following this, we perform all the  necessary examinations. In most cases  hormone stimulation  is then carried out, which results in the growth of several oocytes. We  collect the eggs at the optimal time of maturation and freeze them  in liquid nitrogen. 

If possible, we store up to 30 oocytes so that there are sufficient oocytes for later in vitro fertilization. The majority of eggs survive the freezing process without damage. The  quality  of the eggs  does not decrease  even if they are stored for years. 

60 to 85 percentof all women who use  frozen eggs  for in vitro fertilization  become pregnant.  However, there is no guarantee. Success depends largely  on the age of the woman at the time of egg retrieval  and on  how old she is when the in vitro procedure is carried out. 

The best chance of success is when the eggs are retrieved and cryopreserved before the age of 35. This is because the number of eggs decreases with age. At the same time, the risk of genetic defects increases.