Michelle Emblenton, a biochemist at inviTRA, tells us about the advantages and disadvantages of artificial insemination with sperm donor:
As with any assisted reproductive technique, there are always advantages and disadvantages associated with the treatment, which you need to look at before deciding if it's right for you. Let's start with the advantages.
Artificial insemination is one of the simplest and least expensive treatments. It is also closest to that of natural conception, since fertilization takes place within the woman's body. It is a painless technique and doesn't require any anesthesia, so the patient usually feels much calm. It can be performed within a natural cycle, without the need for any ovarian stimulation, but by performing an ovarian stimulation you can further increase the chances of the success, as you know ovulation is going to be induced, so you are correctly timing the introduction of the sperm when the egg is there. The levels of hormones taken for the ovarian stimulation are very low with artificial insemination, so there is a very very low risk of any complications from this medication. Other advantages are that the success rates of using donor sperm with artificial insemination are higher than when using partner sperm. And it's also advantageous as it has allowed single women and homosexual women to become mothers without their being in a partnership with a man.
Although there are benefits, we also need to look at the disadvantages, and these can include a very low risk of infections. Although this is unlikely, there is always a risk of infection with any procedure. There's also a small risk of allergies with any procedure. The chances of having a multiple pregnancy are increased compared to natural pregnancy, with a 12% chance of having two babies or perhaps more. There is a small risk of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, due to the ovarian stimulation. However, this is a much lower risk than with other treatments such as IVF. Another potential disadvantage is that the man has to come to terms with the fact that their children will not have their genetic load when donor sperm is used, and this is something which can be difficult for men to accept. In these cases, psychological counseling can really help before undergoing the treatment.
