Who needs this guidance

This guide describes the treatment for singles or couples who needs to start treatment with sperm from a donor. Furthermore, this guide covers the application of donor sperm during insemination and IVF/ICSI.

Different types of sperm donation

It is possible to use either anonymous or non-anonymous sperm donation. Non-anonymous sperm donation is divided into three groups: non-ID (not open), ID release (open), and sperm donation with known donor.

Definitions of the varies types of sperm donation  

In anonymous sperm donation, you will only receive a basic profile containing the following details about the donor: height, weight, eye color, hair color, and skin color. Additional information about the donor’s blood type can be obtained if this is evaluated as necessary for health reasons. You and the children born after treatment cannot obtain any further information about the donor.

The anonymity is reciprocal, which means that a sperm donor cannot receive information about you and any child subsequently born after you have received treatment with his sperm. However, since the sperm banks have decided that further information, besides the basic profile, must be available for all donors, anonymous sperm donation is not a possibility as such.

A non-ID release sperm donation with extended profile is a non-anonymous sperm donation where it is possible to obtain more information about the sperm donor at the time of donation than what is contained in the basic profile. For example, the donor catalogue of the sperm bank may contain information about the donor’s occupation, hobbies, education, voice recording, baby photos, etc. However, the donor’s identity cannot be disclosed at any time, nor is it possible for any child to receive information about the donor’s identity. Likewise, a donor can never obtain information about any children born after the mother has received treatment with his sperm.

In ID-release (open sperm donation), the sperm donor’s identity is not known to you at the time of donation, but the donor has agreed with the sperm bank that it will subsequently be possible for any child to receive information about the sperm donor’s identity or, as a minimum, certain additional details. When the child turns 18 years old it is for most cases agreed that the child will be able to obtain information about the sperm donor’s identity. A sperm donor can never become a putative father or obtain information about any children born after the recipient has been treated with his sperm. Like non-ID release sperm donation, it is possible to achieve more information at the time of donation about the donor besides the basic profile.

In known sperm donation, the sperm donor’s identity is known to you at the time of the donation. You choose the sperm donor yourself. Before a man can be approved as a known sperm donor, he must be screened and risk assessed by a sperm bank, and his sperm quality must be suitable for fertility treatment. With his signature, the sperm donor can accept the treatment by which he also acknowledges paternity of any child, and that the child will become his legal heir. An exemption from the rules on paternity is the situation in which a known sperm donor donates sperm to a woman who is married or cohabiting with a partner who has consented to the treatment and thus accepted paternity or co-motherhood. If a known sperm donor donates sperm to a single woman, he always becomes the legal father of the child.

Information about hereditary diseases

By the Danish Act on Artificial Fertilization (Lov om kunstig befrugtning), we are obliged to ensure that you are aware of the following: “When selecting donors, the risk of passing on hereditary diseases, malformations etc. has been limited as much as possible by only using donors who have indicated that they are not aware of any such hereditary risks in their family and who have been interviewed and examined by an experienced healthcare professional to control this. Despite these special precautions, a hereditary risk cannot be ruled out entirely. If, against expectation, the child has a health deficiency at birth or in his or her first years of life that you are told may be hereditary, it is important that you report back to the fertility clinic so that a decision can be made as to whether to continue to use the donor in question. The same applies if you are informed that the deficiency may concern an infectious disease. Even though the donor has tested negative for infectious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis, the risk is never zero.”

We should also point out that information may subsequently emerge about hereditary disease in the donor, which results in the donor being blocked and no longer being eligible. A donor may be blocked many years after the donation as some hereditary diseases only manifest themselves later in the donor’s life. If your treatment with donor sperm results in the birth of a child and there is subsequently information about the donor which means that the donor is blocked in accordance with the current rules of the Danish Patient Safety Authority, you will be notified until the child turns 18 years old. When the child turns 18 years old, he or she may, in principle, be contacted directly.

Sperm donor selection

Before you begin your treatment with a sperm donor from a sperm bank, you must choose which type of sperm donation you wish. There is a common consent form for non-ID release and ID-release sperm donation. Afterwards you choose a sperm donor from the donor catalogue from Cryos by following the guide on the website of The Fertility Department. It is important that the sperm sample arrives at The Fertility Department in time before use. If a known sperm donor is wished for, a separate screening and assessment is needed.

Plan for your next treatment

Before every new treatment you must order donor sperm from Cryos.  There should only be delivered sperm for one treatment at a time. It may be an advantage to use a new sperm donor if you do not get pregnant with the first choice of donor after 2-3 treatments.