Knowledge and attitudes of subfertile couples towards disposition of supernumerary cryopreserved embryos: an Indian perspective

In many cases, supernumerary embryos are cryopreserved for future use following assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatment. Once a couple has completed their family following treatment, the fate of these excess cryopreserved embryos becomes uncertain. The options available for the disposition of cryopreserved embryos are donation to other infertile couples, donation to research and discontinuation of cryostorage. In order to evaluate the knowledge and attitudes of subfertile couples from the Indian subcontinent regarding the fate of their excess cryopreserved embryos, a cross-sectional study was planned at a university-level infertility unit. A two-stage structured interview was conducted with the couples. Some questions in the interview were hypothetical in nature. In total, 87 couples were interviewed, of which 33 (37.9%) were unaware of the options for disposition of supernumerary embryos. Forty (46%) couples indicated a preference to donate their embryos to other subfertile couples, while 10 (11.5%) couples preferred donation to research. Twenty-four (27.6%) couples opted for donation to both other couples and research, while three (3.4%) couples indicated a preference to discontinue storage. Penalized bivariable logistic regression showed that none of the factors examined (i.e. age, education, income or presence of a living child) influenced the couple’s decision regarding embryo donation. The majority of subfertile couples preferred to donate the embryos rather than discontinue storage. The donation of embryos to other subfertile couples was the most preferred option for disposition of embryos.