Oocyte donation pregnancy: What do women understand about risk? an interview study of women who underwent oocyte donation pregnancy

Patient consent is a fundamental legal and professional requirement of any intervention offered to a patient and must include discussion of risks and benefits. The number of women becoming pregnant via oocyte donation has increased markedly in recent years. Such pregnancies are accompanied by different risks to those of naturally conceived pregnancies. Anecdotal evidence suggests that women seeking oocyte donation pregnancy gain limited appreciation of the risks attending oocyte donation during consent discussions. To explore women's understanding of the risks associated with oocyte donation pregnancy a qualitative interview study was conducted in an ante-natal facility in an urban hospital. Sixteen women who had experienced oocyte donation pregnancy participated in semi-structured, audio-recorded interviews exploring their experience of the consent process for oocyte donation and their awareness of pregnancy-related risks once pregnant. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Our principal finding was that women were unaware that their oocyte donation pregnancy carried higher risks than a typical IVF pregnancy. Three themes emerged: (1) women tended to care most about risks associated with success/failure of oocyte donation; (2) women did not know that oocyte donation pregnancies carry specific risks above and beyond IVF pregnancies; (3) women were ambivalent towards receiving risk information. For women accepting an oocyte donation consent at the time of undergoing IVF should include discussion of the risks of subsequent pregnancy to ensure that women are fully informed. Women's understanding of risks should be routinely checked ante-natally.