Artificial Insemination | IUI

Human artificial insemination achieved widespread popularity as an infertility treatment in the 1970s. The most common AI technique used today, intrauterine insemination (IUI), offers certain advantages over ICI. This procedure is considered one of the least invasive, alongside fertility drugs.

Artificial insemination, or AI, is a fertilization procedure in which sperm is artificially placed into a woman’s cervix or uterus. The semen to be implanted is “washed” in a laboratory, which increases the chances of fertilization while removing unnecessary, potentially harmful chemicals. The semen is inserted into the woman, and if the procedure is successful, she conceives. During artificial insemination treatment, the woman’s menstrual cycle is closely monitored using ovulation kits, ultrasounds, and blood tests.

Often simpler and less expensive than in vitro fertilization (IVF), intrauterine insemination is an effective treatment for some forms of infertility. When combined with ovarian stimulation, IUI – which places sperm in the fallopian tubes – produces high fertilization success rates. As a form of artificial insemination, IUI is good for couples with unidentifiable sources of infertility as well as for couples in which the man has some sperm deficiencies or the woman has cervical mucus problems.

This type of procedure may involve one of two options: Intrauterine Insemination and Intracervical Insemination. Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) involves placing the sperm (either the partner’s sperm or donor sperm) directly the female’s uterus, near the time of ovulation. Intracervical Insemination (ICI) involves placing the sperm in the females cervix. Intrauterine Insemination increases the chances of pregnancy because the sperm are placed directly in the uterus, and not in the cervix. This improves the delivery of the sperm to the egg.