Two-thirds of women who donated eggs to fertility clinics reported satisfaction with the process, but 16 percent complained of subsequent physical symptoms, and 20 percent reported lasting psychological effects, the first study to examine the long-term effects of donation says.

The research by scientists at the University of Washington included women who donated eggs at clinics in 20 states and is touted to be the largest study to explore the effects of donation in the U.S., where the practice isn't regulated.

"We don't know how many egg donors there are because no official records are kept, and reporting is on a voluntary basis to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention," says Nancy Kenney, a UW associate professor and lead study author.

The researchers were surprised at the low number of women who reported an awareness of possible physical risk prior to donation. Nearly 63 percent viewed the potential physical risk as minor and 20 percent didn't recall being made aware of it at the time of their first donation.

"Many of these women may be forgetting that they were warned of the lesser risks, such as bloating and the discomfort from hormone injections," says Kenney. "It has been quite a while since they read the material handed out by clinics or heard the risk lecture, and it could be that they simply forgot. The age of the women also could be a factor. Risks don't mean much to young women. They may be discounting the risk."

Of those women who reported physical problems in the donation process, bloating, pain, and cramping, ovarian hyper-stimulation, mood changes and irritability, and weight gain or loss were the most common complaints. Several women claimed infertility or decreased fertility or damage to their ovaries.

Most of the women—73 percent—reported being aware of some of psychological risks associated with egg donation prior to donating. Those risks included the chance they might develop concern for or attachment to their eggs or to a potential or resulting offspring, concern that the donor or resulting child might want a future relationship with them, the possibility of having a genetic child in the world, or the stress resulting from the donation process.

The women were split in their reasons for donating eggs. Nearly one-third said their motivations were completely based on helping others, while almost 19 percent said financial concerns were their sole reason.

The research drew on the experiences of 80 women who donated eggs for the first time at least two years before filling out an 84-item questionnaire. Respondents donated eggs for the first time two to 15 years before completing the questionnaire and were an average of 30.6 years old when surveyed.

The study also found that:

•The average payment was $3,965, with fees ranging from $1,104 to $7,313.

•Donors who said money was a very significant factor in donation received higher payments on average ($4,453) compared with those who said money wasn't important ($3,413).

•Seventy percent of the women donated eggs more than once. Most repeat donors underwent the procedure two or three times.

•Forty-five percent of the women were students when they first donated.

•Ninety-four percent of the students said financial compensation was a significant factor in deciding to donate, compared with 57 percent of the women who weren't students.

•Most of the donations took place in California (23), Massachusetts (7), New York (7), Washington (7), and New Jersey (7).