Donor Insemination

When Donor Insemination is Right

It's no big secret that a large number of couples have difficulty conceiving. Significant numbers of both men and women have a problem with infertility and in America a quarter of these couples successfully conceived with the aid of donor insemination. When considering the number of fertility options couples have they know donor insemination offers them a fresh opportunity when all else fails. 

Donor Insemination When All Else Fails

Fertility clinics around the world work diligently to provide the most reliable resources to infertile couples. From ovulating charts to fertility medications and artificial insemination; all of these methods have a 60-70% success rate with couples conceiving. What's more intriguing about couples that elect donor insemination is because the latest technology used to find an ideal donor matches are more thorough, the advanced insemination process has increased chances of success.

Most often donor inseminations makes sense to couples when they've tried every method possible. Options include charting ovulation cycles and eating healthy as well as turning to fertility drugs and requiring men changing their style of underwear to increase sperm mobility and survival rates (boxers are good, briefs are bad). These methods on the other hand are for couples who have minor fertility problems that can be corrected by choosing the right time to conceive and making sure precautions are taken for sperm vitality by keeping the testicles cool and sperm mobile. Hot baths are bad. Even when these methods don't work sometimes fertility drugs are introduced to increase the chance of pregnancy. But when all these methods fail the couple may choose to look to artificial insemination options.

Statistically,70 percent of women who have no signs of infertility problems under the age of 38 are capable of achieving pregnancy through donor insemination. But of these pregnancies achieved only 30 percent of donor inseminated pregnancies go full term. Conventionally, for moderately healthy women over the age of 38 and without the aid of fertility medications reduce the 30 percent by nearly 20 percent. However, with the aid of fertility drugs given to women over the age of 38, a slight increase of 7-10 percent in successful conception is acheived.

While this is good news for many couples who desperately want a child it still leaves a large percentage of couples who will have problems conceiving regardless of the process or age. With promising new technology the number of donor inseminated births showed a low incline over the past three years but researchers are optimistic the numbers will increase by leaps and bounds in the next 3 - 5 years.

Donor insemination issues have attracted media ridicule frequently over the past decade. But since the first artificial inseminated birth, desperate couples have sought out alternative conception methods when all other methods of conceiving failed. As technology in the fertility field advances and more is learned about the human body, donor insemination will continue to give new hope to struggling couples.

In addition, donor insemination in the 21st Century has also given opportunities to single women who want a baby but not a husband. Lesbian couples who want a family and women over the age of 38 who want their last shot at motherhood make donor insemination worth trying.

Because of the potential difficulty,advantages and disadvantages should be weighed carefully before a couple spends resources considering donor insemination. Those who have successfuly inseminated pregnancies, after struggling for years to conceive naturally, consider it a dream come true.

Unfortunately, it now appears that artificially inseminated pregnancy successes have reached the point where even fertile couples may elect donor insemination instead of natural conception to genetically alter specific characteristics of the baby as opposed to couples who have no choice but to resort to donor insemination. This unfortunate outcome is considered by some a misuse of the technoogy which turns the blessing of life into a procedure slightly resembling routine cosmetic surgery.

Another draw back to donor inseminations is the probability rate of carrying baby through a full term pregnancy which varies from one woman to another. This means that some women will successfully conceive through this method but a larger number of women will not, and the reasons may vary. Fertility treatment is no cheap process and sometimes medical insurances will cover only 30 percent of fertility treatment. This makes the process slow and painful if couples supplement cost with health insurance. For this reason many couples find this choice too expensive and beyond their reach.

The biggest group of detractors who are against donor inseminations are religion driven. Many people hold to the concept that artificial births are unnatural and unhealthy. They believe in natural conceptions. This judgemental stance places moral strain on couples who may be considering donor insemination when everything else has failed. Some women are reluctant to consider donor insemination for fear of ridicule.

Research continues and more groundbreaking technology will becme available to women and couples who have tried conceiving but failed. You may find that DI is the best option for specific circumtances. Make sure to consider all the factors that can make the process a success including age, number of previous births and opting to take fertility drugs. This will increase the chances of getting pregnant and carrying the child full term. Donor insemination may have limitations that are both technological and ethical, so make sure you know all the facts.[source]