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Best Semen Preparation Center For IUI In Nagpur

Home Best Semen Preparation Center For IUI In Nagpur

Best Semen Preparation Center For IUI In Nagpur

Preparation of the sperm for IUI combines sperm washing with swim-up to remove the seminal plasma and concentrate the most motile spermatozoa or sperm in a very small volume of sperm wash media.

Sperm washing is a form of sperm preparation that is required for intrauterine insemination or IVF. During sperm preparation, chemicals remove from the semen, which may cause adverse reactions in the uterus.

During the sperm-washing process, sperm is separated from the seminal fluid. This procedure enhances the fertilizing capacity of the sperm and is thus recommended in cases with immune system disorders, male factor infertility, or in case of unexplained infertility. For semen preparation for  IUI, sexual absence for at least 2 days, but not more than 5 days, is recommended during semen collection. The specimen should be collected in sterile wide-mouth containers via dry masturbation (no lubricants used). Containers are available at our laboratory and can be found at drug stores with the name urine specimen cups. Once the sample has been collected, the container must be kept upright with the lid tightly secured. 

Sperm Preparation Technique

Sperm preparation involves removing the seminal plasma and any cryoprotectant, if used, from the specimen prior to intrauterine insemination.

The Fertility Center offers 3 sperm preparation techniques:

  • Basic Sperm Wash
  • Premium Wash
  • Swim-up Technique

Sperm preparation can be performed on a single specimen prior to initiating intrauterine insemination therapy. A trial wash helps determine the sperm-preparation technique that will yield the best results.

Basic Sperm Wash: This technique uses dilution and centrifugation. A sperm wash solution containing antibiotics and protein supplements is added to the ejaculate. After repeated centrifugation, the seminal fluid is eliminated from the sample and the sperm cells are concentrated for insemination. This procedure takes 20 to 40 minutes.

Premium Wash: This method uses density gradient centrifugation to isolate and purify the motile sperm in order to obtain a sperm sample with motility of at least 90%, depending on the initial quality of the sample. Different concentrations of isolate (extremely dense fluid) are layered in a test tube in ascending order of density (the heaviest layer at the bottom). When a semen sample is placed upon the upper-most isolate layer and centrifuged, any debris, round cells, and non-motile and poor-quality sperm remain in the top layers. Only the motile sperm are able to get through to the bottom layer and are then concentrated for use in artificial insemination. This procedure takes 1 hour. The premium sperm wash technique is excellent for fresh or frozen sperm and can help assess male factor fertility.

Swim-up Technique: This technique uses sperm self-migration to obtain a sperm sample with motility of at least 90%, depending on the initial quality of the sample. A layer of fresh media is gently added to the semen sample in such a way that most of the motile sperm will swim out of the sample and upward into the added media. These harvested motile sperm are subsequently used for insemination. This procedure takes 2 hours. Oligozoospermic men (men with low sperm counts), men with poorly motile sperm as well as men with male-factor infertility are not suitable candidates for this technique. Their sperm will have difficulty swimming up out of the pellet into the nutrient medium.

When is IUI recommended and for whom?

  • Couples without a known cause of subfertility (unexplained subfertility)
  • Couples who have difficulty having vaginal intercourse (for example, erectile dysfunction)
  • Mild male factor infertility
  • Minimal endometriosis
  • Cervical factor infertility (usually due to surgeries involving the cervix)
  • Sero-discordant couples planning pregnancy (to reduce risk of disease transmitted through sexual route)
  • Ovulatory dysfunction/Anovulation
  • Use of donor sperm for inseminatio

How is IUI different from IVF?

The key difference between IUI and IVF is that, in IUI, fertilization (joining of sperm with the egg) takes place naturally inside the body. On the other hand, in IVF, the egg and the sperm are combined outside the body in a lab.

IUI is the more common fertility treatment among the two – and, in most couples, oftentimes the first-line treatment before proceeding to IVF. This is because as IUI is a less invasive and cost-effective technique performed in the office. However, IUI needs patent fallopian tubes and a post processing motile sperm fraction of at least 5 million to achieve good success. If these criteria for IUI are not met, then IVF may be offered.

Although IVF has a higher success rate than IUI, couples are usually offered 2-3 cycles of IUI prior to IVF based on the patient profile and specific fertility issues encountered.