Sperm Banking

General Information

Pittsburgh Cryobank, Inc. offers sperm banking to males wishing to preserve their future fertility.

Many men in the following situations choose to cryopreserve their sperm:

   • Chemotherapy, Radiation Therapy, a Medication Regimen, or other treatment that may decrease fertility
   • Testicular, Prostate, or other Urological Surgery
   • Vasectomy
   • Exposure to Chemical, Biological, or Environmental Hazards (herbicides, radiation, etc.) that may decrease fertility
   • Active Military Duty/Frequent Travel
   • Involvement in an ART procedure
   • Involvement in Sports Activities where there is an increased risk of injury to the reproductive system

          It is recommended that sperm samples be cryopreserved prior to treatment, surgery, and/or exposure to chemical, biological, or environmental hazards for the best quality sample.

          Potential future uses of cryopreserved specimens include IUI, IVF, ICSI, and other ART-related procedures. Please note that quality of the sample post thaw will most likely dictate which procedure(s) can potentially be used. See FAQ for details.

See Sperm Cryopreservation Information for a history of cryopreservation and additional details.

Scheduling an Appointment

All patients are required to call Pittsburgh Cryobank, Inc. to schedule an appointment with the laboratory. Appointments are scheduled:

Monday through Friday from 8:00am-2:00pm

Physician’s Referral

          All patients interested in sperm banking must be under the care of a physician and obtain a physician’s prescription, or referral. All cryopreservation reports and viral testing results of the patient will be released to the referring physician only. The physician’s referral should request:

                               Sperm cryopreservation and viral testing necessary for banking.

          If more than 1 semen sample will be frozen and stored, the physician’s referral must include the number of samples to be cryopreserved, or a reference to “multiple samples.”

          The physician’s referral may be faxed to our office prior to the scheduled appointment or delivered by the patient during the first scheduled appointment.

Viral Disease Testing

All patients will be screened for the following viral diseases during the first scheduled appointment:
                    HIV 1 & 2
                    HTLV I & II
                    Hepatitis B (sAg testing)
                    Hepatitis C

    
Recommended Abstinence

          For the best quality sample, Pittsburgh Cryobank, Inc. recommends 2-5 days abstinence from any ejaculation prior to your appointment. Any semen sample submitted, regardless of days abstinence, can be cryopreserved. However, please be aware that the sample quality may not be optimal. We are aware that some medical treatment regimens, or timeframes, may not allow the recommended days of abstinence. Remember that this is only a recommendation, NOT a requirement to cryopreserve a sample.

Photo Identification

          On each visit to the laboratory at Pittsburgh Cryobank, Inc., patients must bring a form of photo identification. A copy of your photo identification will accompany your cryopreservation worksheet. As well, your photo identification will serve as verification on all contract acknowledgements and consents.

Fees

          Payment is due at the time of service via cash (exact amount), check, or credit card (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express). Please note that we do not accept insurance, but will provide you with an itemized receipt for reimbursement, if applicable.
See Fees for a list of our current prices.

Sperm Cryopreservation Information

          It has been known for several hundred years that sperm may be frozen and regain motility following thaw. Preserving the integrity of an embryo during freezing and thawing has been more of a challenge. However, through the 1940’s, improvements in cryopreservation technologies and its application to laboratory animals and farm livestock led to developments enabling these techniques to be used in humans. Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) using frozen sperm and frozen embryos has resulted in millions of laboratory animal and farm livestock births with no increase in abnormalities or defects.

          Attempts to use frozen sperm in humans began in the 1950's, with the first successful pregnancy accomplished in 1953. Since that time, there have been hundreds of thousands of human births reported from the use of frozen sperm (this number does not reflect the total number of babies born from frozen sperm since the procedure is now so commonly used that most births are not reported as using such ART procedures). More recent advancements in human embryo cryopreservation resulted in the first birth in 1984, following an ART procedure in an Australian laboratory, using embryos that had been frozen for two months. The rate of abnormalities in children of naturally conceived pregnancies may be as high as 5%. Based on current scientific knowledge, there has been no evidence of an increase in abnormalities or birth defects in children born from frozen sperm or frozen embryo specimens. However, there is no indication that the birth defect rate will be decreased and no guarantee that a higher birth defect rate will not occur with the use of frozen specimens. Because variation exists with each patient, specimens from some individuals will not store as long or as well as specimens from others. The maximum time currently recommended, prior to re-evaluation, for storage of frozen sperm specimens is five years. However, births have been reported from sperm specimens that have been frozen and stored up to 15 years and, in our affiliated laboratories, from embryos frozen and stored as long as 7 years.

          The purpose of freezing and storing sperm and embryos is to establish a pregnancy at some point in the future. We devote our best effort to preserving the fertilizing ability of the sperm and integrity of the embryo. However, any individual submitting specimens for freezing and storage must understand that many factors beside the apparent ability of the specimen to survive freezing enter into conception. These factors include the partner, as well as other factors not related to the freezing and thawing process. Pregnancy with the frozen specimen, therefore, cannot be guaranteed.

          In order to attempt a pregnancy with the frozen sperm specimen, one of many ART procedures may be performed by a physician properly trained in this area. It will require precise timing of the partner’s ovulation and proper technique. It may take several attempts at assisted reproduction prior to achieving pregnancy, and for this reason, we suggest that multiple specimens be frozen.

          Pittsburgh Cryobank can receive specimens in the frozen state after they have been processed and frozen at other laboratories that are more conveniently located for Clients. If we did not perform the actual freezing process, we cannot be responsible for the quality of the specimen or the success of the freezing process utilized. In this case, the only information we have available are the prefreeze characteristics of each specimen and the results of any quality control tests performed at the freezing laboratory. Pittsburgh Cryobank will NOT thaw any specimen unless directed by the Client in writing. Our only responsibility in this scenario is to provide quality long-term storage and transportation of the specimen to the Client's physician upon request.

          We emphasize that we cannot guarantee you will have a child with the specimens you cryopreserve. We assure you that we will employ our best efforts to see that the specimens are properly processed, stored, transferred, identified and/or returned in the most viable state. The American Association of Tissue Banks holds regular meetings to disseminate information on the most modern methods of tissue preservation. We will employ the best techniques available for cryopreservation of the specimens. However, we are aware of no certain standards by which the adequacy and suitability of specimens for freezing may be tested. Further, each person is unique and factors in the patient and in the patient’s partner will affect the probability of successfully achieving a pregnancy.

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