Surrogacy is a method or agreement whereby a woman agrees to carry a pregnancy for another couple or persons, who will become the newborn child's parent(s) after birth.

Intended parents or Biological parents may seek a surrogacy arrangement when either pregnancy is medically impossible, pregnancy risks present an unacceptable danger to the mother's health. 

Monetary compensation may or may not be involved in these arrangements. If the surrogate receives money for the surrogacy the arrangement is considered commercial surrogacy, if she receives no compensation beyond reimbursement of medical and other reasonable expenses it is referred to as altruistic.The legality and costs of surrogacy vary widely between different jurisdictions. 

 

Types of Surrogacy 

 

The fertilisation of the surrogate may take place in a number of ways, each of which has implications for the genetic relationship of the resulting child with the surrogate and the future parents. There are two main types of surrogacy: gestational surrogacy and traditional surrogacy. In the United States, and in India gestational surrogacy is performed more commonly than traditional surrogacy and is considered less legally complex.

 

Gestational surrogacy

Gestational surrogacy (also known as host or full surrogacy ) was first achieved in April 1986. It takes place when an embryo created by In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) technology is implanted in a surrogate, sometimes also called a gestational carrier or Surrogate Host . Gestational surrogacy may take a number of forms, but in each form the resulting child is genetically unrelated to the surrogate:

* the embryo is created using the intended father's sperm and the intended mother's eggs. The resulting child is genetically related to both intended parents  ( SELF OR IVF SURROGACY)

* the embryo is created using the intended father's sperm and a donor egg where the donor is not the surrogate. The resulting child is genetically related to the intended father.  (DONOR EGG SURROGACY) 

* the embryo is created using the intended mother's egg and donor sperm. The resulting child is genetically related to the intended mother.  ( DONOR SPERM SURROGACY ) 

 

Surrogacy may be appropriate if you have a medical condition that makes it impossible or dangerous to get pregnant and to give birth. 

The type of medical conditions that might make surrogacy necessary for you include:

*  absence or malformation of the womb

*  recurrent pregnancy loss

*  repeated in vitro fertilisation (IVF) implantation failures.