Directed Donor Screening

A directed donor is an individual who stores sperm for a designated recipient who is not his intimate partner or spouse. A known donor is a directed donor whose recipient has chosen to waive the recommended six-month quarantine of the donor’s semen samples. Click here to find out more detailed information on the differences between directed donor and known donor accounts, legal considerations, and more.

At The Sperm Bank of California (TSBC), we encourage recipients to be involved in the directed donor screening process from the very first visit in order to ensure clear communication between all parties. It’s helpful if the recipient and her donor can come in together for the donor’s first storage appointment. When the recipient lives in another state, it’s important that she consult by phone with her TSBC healthworker/case manager. The recipient and donor will have joint decisions to make regarding the donor’s screening, how many storage visits the donor should make, and whether to wash his semen samples for intrauterine insemination (IUI) prior to storage.

Recommended First Step: We recommend that every directed donor schedule a semen analysis and test thaw appointment with TSBC prior to storing sperm. At this appointment, the donor provides an ejaculate for evaluation only—the ejaculate is not stored and can not be used for insemination. Our lab will perform a complete semen analysis on the sample, freeze it, and thaw it a week later to assess cryo survival. The semen analysis indicates the donor’s general fertility, and the test thaw indicates how well the donor’s sperm survives freezing (anywhere from 50% to 80% of sperm die in the freezing process). Based on the results, the TSBC healthworker will be able to recommend whether the donor is a good candidate for sperm banking.

Screening Requirements: TSBC follows sperm bank regulations, which impose strict screening requirements on all donors who store semen samples in order to reduce the risk of passing on sexually transmissible infections through insemination. We require that the donor completes testing for sexually transmissible infections through our own lab, and we will collect blood, urine, and semen samples at the time of the donor’s first storage visit. We also require directed donors to complete an HIV risk assessment form; a personal and family health history form; a medical examination (which must include a genital exam for indications of sexually transmissible infections); and blood testing to identify blood type and Rh factor. Click here for a detailed list of initial and exit screening requirements.