The 3 steps in medical insemination

Step 1: Preparatory measures

You should allow enough time for planning and preparation. The preparation takes place in cooperation with the doctor. The first step is to determine whether medical insemination is an option.

The method is suitable if there is a fertility disorder of the male sperm cells on the part of the man. If the sperm cells are of poor quality or if there is no male partner, the method is carried out with a heterologous sperm donation (foreign donation).

If the woman has been diagnosed with cervical mucus impermeability, medical insemination can also be resorted to. It is important in the preparation that the optimal time for carrying out artificial insemination is determined. At the right time(ovulation), insemination by the doctor should shorten the path to the egg and thus increase the probability of fertilisation. In advance, stimulation of egg maturation and ovulation can be carried out with the administration of appropriate hormones.

Preparation for insemination usually takes place with the reproductive doctor. You must decide in advance whether you want to use a homologous or heterologous sperm donation. Try to avoid stress by planning well and comprehensively.

Step 2: Carry out sperm donation

With the help of masturbation, the man performs the semen sample. The semen from the sperm donor is collected in a cup (often: urine cup). If it looks like too little semen, you should not be alarmed. The average amount of ejaculation depends on sexual intercourse and masturbation. The decisive factor for fertility is the amount of active sperm contained, which should be determined in a previous spermiogram. Find out more about this in our article: Artificial insemination through sperm donation

After a period of about 20-30 minutes, the sperm begins to liquefy. With all methods from ICI, a pre-treatment by sperm washing takes place.

Step 3: Carrying out medical insemination

After the semen has been washed, the semen can be used. With the help of a syringe and a catheter, the semen is placed directly in the cervix, in the uterus, in the fallopian tube or in the uterus and fallopian tube. This creates a much shorter path for the sperm to reach the egg.

After the sperm transfer, it is advisable for you, as the recipient of the sperm, to lie still for about half an hour.

After about 2 weeks you can see from a pregnancy test whether it has worked or whether the procedure needs to be repeated. Usually an appointment is made directly at the practice to do a pregnancy test. You can also do a pregnancy test in advance. However, we recommend that you wait to have it done and that you have it done by medical staff.

The different procedures are identical in terms of the process. Only the place of insertion is different. The following overview shows the respective procedures:

Experiences: Medical insemination