Cohort study reveals low utilization but favorable assisted reproduction outcomes in men undergoing elective sperm cryopreservation, highlighting its value as fertility insurance.
Key Points
Evaluate long-term utilization rates, reproductive efficacy, and disposal outcomes of elective sperm cryopreservation in men facing fertility-threatening medical conditions.
Longitudinal cohort study of 930 men seeking elective semen cryostorage over a 22-year period at a single academic hospital (N=833 successfully cryostored).
Assessed sample disposition, timing and methods of assisted reproduction, and baseline semen parameters compared with healthy donor controls.
Only 64 men (7% of total applicants; 9% of survivors) utilized cryostored spermatozoa across 85 treatment cycles at a median of 36 months post-storage, with nearly 90% of use occurring within 10 years.
Intracytoplasmic sperm injection produced pregnancy with significantly greater efficiency (median 3 cycles) than conventional IVF (median 8 cycles) or artificial insemination (median >6 cycles; P < 0.05).
Sperm concentration was significantly lower in all cryostorage groups compared with healthy donor controls (P < 0.05), with post-orchidectomy testicular cancer patients having approximately half the sperm density of other clinical groups (P < 0.05).