What are the benefits and disadvantages of using my own eggs for in vitro fertilization?

What are the benefits and disadvantages of using my own eggs for in vitro fertilization?

Richard Paulson (Chief, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, USC) gives expert video advice on: How are my eggs collected for in vitro fertilization?; What are the benefits and disadvantages of using my own eggs for in vitro fertilization?; What are the benefits and disadvantages of using frozen eggs for in vitro fertilization? and more...

Most couples of course want to have their own biological child. Most couples really would ideally like to not have any infertility in the first place; but if they have to go to the doctor's office of course what they want is they want to use the wife's eggs and the man's sperm to produce their own biological child. In some cases this is not possible. It is very rare now that we have to use a sperm donor in association with assisted reproductive technologies because of the intracytoplasmic sperm injection technique that makes it possible for men who have very weak sperm to achieve fertilisation. However, the egg is such an important player in the game that women over the age of 40 or women who are approaching menopause (even at other ages) may have eggs that are not good enough to be able to produce an embryo that will actually implant, and these women end up having to use a donor egg. It's very easy to say that the donor egg is a more successful technology; of course it's easier to achieve fertilisation if you take egg from a young fertile egg donor. However, most couples would prefer to get pregnant with their own genetic material, and so of course in the vast majority of couples we begin by using the wife's own eggs and the husband's sperm in order to help them become pregnant and resort to donor egg or to donor sperm only as a last resort.