What is Donor Insemination and How Does it Work?

Donor insemination refers to the use of a sperm donor by a woman that does not have a fertile male partner. Common examples include single women, same sex couples and traditional heterosexual couples that have chosen to use a sperm because of male partner infertility or certain genetic disorders.

The insemination is performed by placing the donor sperm in or at the cervix generally referred to as ICI or Intracervical Insemination.  The other method is Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) where the sperm is inserted directly into the uterus.

If neither of these methods is feasible, In vitro fertilization (IVF) is recommended.  In this procedure an egg is removed by aspiration from the ovary, placed into a Petri dish and fertilized by the addition of sperm.

How Donor Insemination Works – An Overview:

 In general these are the steps usually recommended:

1)    Find a good doctor. The most reliable way is to find a good fertility clinic which will have trained and certified reproductive endocrinologists (RE).

Go in for a preliminary consultation – many fertility clinics offer free ones, so take your time and choose the one that makes you feel most comfortable.

If you’re unsure where to find a clinic, ask for a recommendation from friends or colleagues or go online and do a search for fertility clinics in your area. SpermCenter’s Fertility Clinic search or Find A Fertility Clinic are great resources.

2)    Once you’ve set yourself up with a clinic and doctor you like, they will give you a full physical examination and relevant laboratory testing to determine your general health and identify any factors that may adversely affect your fertility potential. 

This generally includes the determination of your blood type and screening for infectious diseases such as HIV, hepatitis, syphilis and gonorrhea. Many physicians will review your genetic history for risks and may recommend consultation with a genetics counselor.

3)    After this initial evaluation you and your doctor will discuss options for insemination such as ICI, IUI and IVF to determine which method would be best for you.

4)   Next, you will need to choose your sperm donor. It is important to remember that when you select a donor you are  also choosing a sperm bank. Both are important.

Please see our section on how to choose a sperm donor for more information about donor selection. We highly recommend you start with our Donor Wizard, which takes you step-by-step through the process of choosing a donor.

5)    After you’ve ordered your donor sperm and it’s been delivered, your doctor will perform the insemination and schedule any follow up visits.