Gender Selection Laboratory Services

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There are many myths and old wives tales about increasing the chances for a boy or girl by doing certain things. They range from eating more red meat to making love standing up if you want a boy. Eat lots of sweets and make love during full moon if you try for a girl. Following these ideas can be fun and entertaining but none of them have ever been proven to be effective. When a couple is serious about sex selection, gender pre-selection on sperm is one of the proven methods today.

Our Special Offer for New Patients:

Receive a complementary consultation at IVF Orange for the X-Y-chromosome separation procedure. Get all your questions answered about the unique procedure of Gender Pre-selection.

Especially among patients undergoing artificial insemination or in-vitro fertilization, the desires to preselect the child gender is even higher due to their limitation on family growth. The gender pre-selection at IVF-Orange is an isolation method for separating X or Y-bearing chromosome performed on living sperm cells. The method is based on the DNA content and a distinguishing characteristic of the sperm: X-bearing sperm is 2.8% total DNA heavier than Y-bearing sperm and the fluorescent spot or F-body on the Y-bearing sperm.

Methods of Sex Selection

Currently, there are many different method of sex preselection:

Human Serum Albumin Gradients (HSA), Percoll Gradients, Sephendex columns, modified swim-up technique. In combination with IVF, there are the options of Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) and MicroSort.

At our fertility center, we provide the Human Serum Albumin (HSA) method for both Male and Female Gender Pre-selection without IVF. The isolation process is based on the ability of sperm to swim with difference degrees of velocity in albumin gradients. In general, a semen sample is washed and is layered over a solution of HSA in a series of columns. At a specific time of incubation, a portion of sperm which swim downward to a specific HSA gradient are collected and resuspended in a nutrient rich media. The preselected sperm can then be used in artificial insemination (IUI/ICI) at the time of ovulation or if desired, for an in-vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure.

Gender Selection Methods Compared

	Ericsson Method (at IVF-Orange)	Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis – PGD	MicroSort
Average Cost (excl. lab, office visits, medication, etc.)	$680	approx. $8,000	$3,300 (Family genetics criteria to become a patient)
Average Success Rate	>78-85% for boys >73-75% for girls	Close to 100%	88% for boys 74% for girls
Options of Insemination	IUI, ICI, IVF, At-home Insemination	IVF with ICSI only	IUI, IVS/ICUI
Degree of Procedure Difficulty	Standard	High	Instrument dependent
Risks	Very low: Potential damage to sperm during the process is extremely low. IUI & At-home Insemination are low risk methods of insemination.	Potential damage to embryo during biospsy procedure; potential misdiagnosis of chromosomal abnormalities due to limitations of chromosomal testing ability; requires egg retrieval & ICSI; more likely to result in multiple births	Risks of potential sperm damage unpublished at this time – procedure is still considered investigational.
Patient Stress Level Associated with Procedure	Minimal to none	High	Low – Insufficient information available at this time
Other Considerations	None	Requires destroying, freezing or donation of unused, viable embryos	Potential patients must qualify to be accepted into the clinical trial
FDA Approval	Yes	Yes	Investigational – Not FDA approved
Please Note: The information above does not guarantee 100% accuracy as data is compiled from multiple sources. As with any procedure, you should seek the advice of a qualified fertility specialist for your individual situation.

* At-home Insemination is not recommended, but if patients request it, we’ll be happy to provide all tools and instructions to try it.

Gender Pre-Selection Facts

The Albumin Method improves the statistical odds of producing a male or female child, using a method of collecting X or Y bearing sperm in high but not pure concentrations.
The method does not provide perfect control, but substancially improves the odds favoring one or another outcome.
The method is safe, non-invasive, and not associated with any form of damage to either sperm or embryo.
This method may be used as purely a matter of preference, or when parent desires gender balancing in the family.

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