When men produce little to no sperm in their semen or are unable to ejaculate, sperm retrieval might just be the answer.

There are several ways to retrieve sperm from the reproductive tract. Men with azoospermia (no sperm in the semen) can father a child through intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection if sperm can be retrieved from their epididymis or testis. Various percutaneous and open surgical procedures have been described to retrieve sperm. In men with obstructive azoospermia, epididymal sperm can usually be retrieved by percutaneous epididymal sperm aspiration (PESA) or needle aspiration biopsy. In men with non-obstructive azoospermia, there will be no sperm in the epididymis, and testicular sperm retrieval is required.

Cryopreservation or cryobanking is the process of collecting, cooling, and storing gametes (sperm and eggs) and embryos (tissues) at very low or freezing temperatures to save them for future use. Frozen reproductive materials can be stored for many years and used during artificial insemination procedures (sperm) or in vitro fertilization (sperm, egg, embryos) to achieve pregnancy. Following strict ethical guidelines, such products can also be donated or discarded.

Egg Freezing

By puberty, women have an average of 300,000 to 400,000 eggs remaining in their ovaries, and that number continues to decrease with age. This is one reason it can be more difficult to become pregnant after the age of 35. Many women want to become parents but worry about the effect of their age on their chances of conceiving. Egg freezing (oocyte cryopreservation) is one method becoming more commonly used to increase women’s chances of having a baby as they age. For women who want children in the future, their early 30s are an ideal time to begin considering timelines based on their careers, relationship status, and how many children they want.

Egg freezing is something to consider if:

• You have recently been diagnosed with cancer.
• You have recently been diagnosed with premature ovarian failure.
• You have not found the right partner to begin a family.
• Starting your family is something you would prefer to pursue later in life.

Egg freezing technology has significantly advanced, and offers women the gift of choice, flexibility, and control over their reproductive future. Frozen oocytes can be stored for several years until needed.

Embryo Freezing

Embryo freezing can be an option for fertility preservation. Embryos may be frozen during an IVF cycle in case of hyperstimulation of the woman. Following an IVF cycle and fresh transfer, excess embryos are frozen and stored for future use.

Exploring Fertility Options: Egg vs. Embryo Freezing

The younger a woman is when she freezes her eggs, the greater her odds of success. Your eggs are never going to be of better quality than they are today. Research also shows that most women do not end up using frozen eggs for reasons that include getting pregnant naturally.

Patients commonly ask if they should freeze eggs or embryos, and when they should do so.

Freezing eggs is more common and doesn’t require a woman to have a partner or sperm donor yet. However, frozen embryos can improve the odds of a live birth in the future because they’ve made it further along in the reproductive process.

There’s a huge attrition rate from an egg to an embryo. Freezing embryos provide more information than freezing eggs. It’s already vetted. It’s already done a lot of the things it needs to do to result in a pregnancy than the eggs.

A woman does not need a partner’s consent to freeze or warm her eggs, but embryos require the couple’s consent. This might pose a challenge in cases of divorce or simple disagreement.