After an IVF procedure is performed, it is often the case that more embryos are produced than can be used per cycle. Unused embryos are therefore frozen and cryogenically preserved for the couple to whom they belonged, allowing them to have more children in the future. Or, the couple might choose to donate the extra embryos to a fertility clinic or an embryo bank, in which case, the embryos would be matched to a prospective couple wishing to be the recipient of an embryo donation.
If all requirements are met and the couple passes the necessary screenings, then the embryo can be transferred into the recipient mother, in which case the child’s mother would be considered the recipient, not the embryo donor.
Gender Selection, also known as sex selection or family balancing, as an infertility treatment, refers to the selection of an offspring's sex before implantation of the embryo into the womb via in-vitro fertilization (IVF). Some couples prefer to choose the gender of their offspring for a variety of reasons. A couple may opt for gender selection to avoid a “sex linked” genetic disease, such as Hemophilia.
Other couples may desire to choose the sex of their baby to balance with the gender of their already existent offspring. There are two methods of gender selection used today, sperm sorting, also known as Microsort technology, and preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD).
Success rates for both methods of gender selection vary. Scientists claim that sperm sorting success rates for girls are higher than for boys, while PGD is at least 95% effective for both genders.