Intrauterine Insemination (IUI)
The male partner's sperm is collected and is then injected into the female partner's cervix usually on two consecutive days at the time of ovulation. An oral medication, Clomid®, is often taken on days five to nine increasing the success rate of this treatment. IUI is most appropriate for couples with mild male factor, minimal endometriosis, or unexplained infertility with success rates ranging 2-20 percent per cycle.
Therapeutic Donor Insemination (TDI)
This treatment involves injecting sperm from an anonymous or a known donor into a woman's cervix at the time that she is ovulating. This treatment is undertaken in couples in whom the male partner has a low sperm count; in women without partners; and in lesbian couples. The use of frozen semen to prevent sexually transmitted disease is recommended by the Food and Drug Administration and the Center for Disease Control. At sperm banks, donors are tested for sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, hepatitis, and others.
Commercial sperm banks are the source of donor sperm in the majority of cases. The sperm banks provide information about the physical characteristics, medical history, education, and ethnic or racial background of the donors. More recently, some donors have given permission to sperm banks to reveal their identities if requested by the child at some point in the future. Since success rates for cycles with frozen sperm are slightly less than with fresh sperm, this treatment should be continued for three to six cycles before trying another treatment.
Ovulation Induction
In this process, medications are taken (oral or injectable) to stimulate the ovaries to make eggs. Women with ovulation problems caused by polycystic ovary disease (PCOD), elevated prolactin levels, absence of periods due to abnormal hormonal secretion by the reproductive portion of the brain (hypothalamus), and premature ovarian failure have good results with this treatment method. When ovulation induction is successful, pregnancy rates per cycle are close to those of normally ovulating women in their age group.
Table of Contents - Infertility Patient Guide
