Successful sperm storage for 28 years.

OBJECTIVE

To report on two instances of successful long-term cryopreservation resulting in live births.

DESIGN

Case report.

SETTING

The patient stored his sperm at a private sperm banking facility, and his partner underwent artificial insemination at an obstetrics/gynecology practice for one pregnancy and at a fertility center for the other.

PATIENT(S): One man who stored his sperm before treatment for cancer.

INTERVENTION(S): Storage of sperm under liquid nitrogen in a carousel canister system. Intrauterine insemination in which the semen was thawed, washed with human tubal fluid (HTF), and inseminated.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Successful pregnancy resulting in live birth.

RESULT(S): Artificial insemination with semen cryopreserved for 21 and 28 years resulted in two live births.

CONCLUSION(S): This case report describes the to-date longest known successful cryopreservation of sperm, with two live births resulting from IUI. Successful long-term semen storage can be very beneficial for men facing impaired fertility or sterility early in life, so that they have sufficient time to make appropriate family planning decisions.