FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

• How do I get started?

  Your first step for selecting a donor should be to choose a health care professional to help guide you through the process. After seeking professional medical advice, the process is fairly simple. You can browse our donor catalog to view donor profiles, or you can perform an advanced search for specific donor characteristics. Once you have chosen a donor, simply contact New England Cryogenic Center to place an order.

  Please note: we recommend having several donors selected (at least three) in case your preferred donor is unavailable.

• What type of information do I need to have prepared to place an order?

  To place an order you will need to set up an account (see our forms center). When calling to set up an account please have the following information available:

  • Your name, address and telephone number
  • Shipping address
  • Preferred shipping method
  • Donor number(s) in order of preference
  • Number of vials and preparation type (ICI, IUI, ART)
  • Date the specimens need to arrive at your provider’s office or your home*
     * Note: Physician approval is required for home delivery.
  • Payment information – New England Cryogenic Center accepts most major credit cards including Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover. You may also arrange to pay by check, money order, cash.
  • If you are planning to store sperm with New England Cryogenic Center for use at a later date, you will need to submit a signed banking agreement in addition to setting up an account.
• What is the difference between an ICI, an IUI and an ART prepared specimen?

  ICI and IUI (sometimes referred to as “unwashed” and “washed”) and ART specimens are used for various artificial insemination procedures, with some doctors preferring one preparation method over the other. In most instances, a doctor will recommend washed units for an IUI insemination (intrauterine insemination). The process of making an IUI specimen begins before cryopreservation. The sperm are separated from the seminal fluid by centrifugation and a cryoprotectant is added, creating an IUI specimen. While IUI is most often requested for intrauterine insemination, some doctors wish to wash the specimen themselves, and therefore instruct their client to order ICI (intracervical insemination) specimen to be washed in their office or facility. An ART vial is prepared for an assisted reproductive procedure such as an in-vitro fertilization or an intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). These vials generally have a lower total motile sperm count as not as many sperm are needed for these types of procedures.

• What methods of payment do you accept?

  New England Cryogenic Center accepts most major credit cards including VISA, MASTERCARD, AMERICAN EXPRESS, and DISCOVER cards. We also accept cash, checks and money orders.

• What types of shipping arrangements are available?

  We know how important it is to receive your order when you need it. While we offer a variety of standard delivery options, we will also go to great lengths to make sure you get your order when you need it. Our shipping capabilities are unsurpassed – we take extraordinary care to protect your specimen and deliver it in ideal condition.

  For clients in the Greater Boston area, standard courier delivery is Monday through Friday for delivery to a medical facility. Specimens will be delivered a minimum of one business day after the order is placed. You may also elect to avoid delivery charges and pick up your order at our Marlborough laboratory. A preparation fee applies.

  For clients anywhere else in the world, we ship vials using a priority delivery service. All specimens are shipped in portable liquid nitrogen vapor tanks. These cryopreservation tanks are guaranteed by the manufacturer to maintain proper temperature for 7 days from the date of shipping. Please see our page on Shipping for more information.

• What diseases do you screen a donor for?

  We conduct the following tests on every donor:

  • Hepatitis B surface antigen
  • Hepatitis B core antibody
  • Gonorrhea (GC)
  • Syphilis
  • Cytomegalovirus (CMV antibody)
  • Hepatitis C virus
  • Cystic fibrosis (please note that not all donors have been tested for the same number of CF mutations. Please call and speak with a New England Cryogenic Center customer representative to find out the specific number of mutations tested on your donor of choice)
  • Chlamydia trachomatis
  • HIV-1 and HIV-2
  • HTLV-1 and HTLV-2
  • B-thalassemia*
  • Tay-Sachs carrier screen*
  • Sickle cell carrier screen*

  * These tests are conducted on donors from specific

• What is cytomegalovirus (CMV)?
  • What is cytomegalovirus (CMV)?

  CMV is a common virus from the family of herpes viruses.  It is often the cause ofmononucleosis, pneumonia and other types of viral infections. Over 80% of the adult population has already been exposed to the CMV virus. CMV can be of clinical significance, especially in immunocompromised individuals, such as those who have had organ transplants, or who have had leukemia or HIV/AIDs.  Most healthy people who are infected by CMV after birth have no symptoms, although some may develop symptoms of mononucleosis, the flu or a sore throat. Most CMV infections exhibit minimal or no symptoms, and thus go undetected.

   

  • How is CMV spread?

  The active CMV virus may be shed in bodily fluids of any infected individual, including urine, saliva, blood and semen. The shedding of the virus from cells into bodily fluids can occur intermittently, without any signs or symptoms of CMV infection.

   

  • Testing for CMV

  A number of laboratory tests have been developed which can detect the presence of CMV antibodies. These antibodies develop following infection with CMV.  Increase in the level of the IgM antibody is indicative of an active CMV infection. The IgG antibody develops after an active CMV infection.  However, shedding of the virus and increase in IgM can occur at any time. Therefore, testing of total antibodies, as well as IgG and IgM separately, is done for blood and tissue donors. Persons who have been infected with CMV produce IgG antibodies to the virus which persist in that person’s body for their lifetime.

   

  • IgG versus IgM testing

  The testing of tissue donors, including semen donors, for CMV involves testing of the blood for total CMV antibodies, which include both IgG and IgM antibodies. The total antibody test only indicates that the person has been exposed to the CMV virus. An additional test is done for IgM antibodies and, if elevated, suggests and active infection.

   

  • Interpretation of CMV status test results

  A positive CMV IgG test shows that the person has had a past CMV infection or has been exposed to the virus. An IgM test that is positive indicates a current/active CMV infection. If the CMV IgG test is positive and the CMV IgM test is negative, it merely means that the person had been previously exposed to CMV. Note that once a person has had a CMV infection, the IgG test will always show positive, but if the IgM test is also positive, the person is actively shedding the virus and is once again positive.

   

  • Significance of CMV and pregnancy

  CMV can be transmitted from the mother to the fetus and can lead to congenital anomalies.  It can be transmitted in semen to the female, and then to an embryo, fetus or a baby during pregnancy. Congenital CMV is the leading infectious cause of deafness, learning disabilities and intellectual disability in children.

• What is the purpose of the Quarantine period, and how long does it last?

  A donor is tested for a number of infectious diseases when he starts in the donor program. The semen is frozen and stored for 180 days and then the donor is retested. This allows for seroconversion, i.e., for enough antibody to show up to be detected by the blood test. This is an important step to ensure the health of both mother and baby.

• How important is choosing a donor with a specific blood type?

  Donor blood type may be important to you if:

  • You don’t plan on telling your child he or she was conceived with donated sperm
  • Your own blood type is Rh-negative. Women who are Rh-negative may develop antibodies to a fetus that is Rh-positive.

  We strongly encourage you to discuss blood type matters with your physician or health care professional.

• Can I perform the insemination at home or can this only be done at the doctor's office?

  Yes. Provided the proper forms are completed, an insemination can certainly be performed at home. Many of our clients prefer the privacy of this method. We do require physician approval for at home inseminations.

• Can I use a friend or relative as a donor?

  Yes. While this simplifies the process of selecting a donor, your friend or relative will need to adhere to the same process all of our sperm donors follow. Contact New England Cryogenic Center for more information about our Selected/Known Donor Program.

• How do I report a birth?

  Please contact our offices to report a birth. We limit the numbers of pregnancies that can be achieved with each donor’s sperm. Therefore, it is very important to us to track the numbers of pregnancies for each donor.

• Does cryopreserving sperm reduce the success of achieving a pregnancy?

  Cryopreservation may result in some loss of viable motile sperm. However, this may be compensated for by increasing the number of sperm used during insemination. Successful pregnancies have recently been achieved with sperm frozen for 28 years.

• How are my specimens stored?

  After sperm is collected, it is cryopreserved in a liquid nitrogen tank at -196 degrees Celsius (-320 degrees F), a temperature at which all metabolic processes are suspended. The specimens are stored in our state-of-the-art laboratory, which is under constant surveillance. Storage is maintained by a staff of highly trained cryogenic professionals supervised by a team of medical professionals.

• How can I be assured the specimens I withdraw are mine?

  Accurate identification of a specimen is one of New England Cryogenic Center’s prime concerns. Each banking client is assigned a unique identifying number. Our quality control systems ensure that each specimen is properly labeled with the unique identifier on the storage container, and in all inventory documents. After a specimen is produced, it remains under the responsibility of one of our highly trained technicians. New England Cryogenic Center maintains strict policies to ensure that each client’s identity is tracked throughout the entire banking and storage process.

• What are your credentials?

  Our laboratory and scientific protocol are certified, licensed and/or governed by the following organizations:

  Certifications – New England Cryogenic Center is certified and licensed with the following regulatory agencies:

  American Association of Blood Banks

  Massachusetts Department of Health
  Licensed/Inspected, License #3213

  CLIA ’88
  Certification #22D0725005

  New York State Department of Health
  License #GA077 and # GA114

  California Department of Health Services
  License #CTB80400 and #CTB80440

  Maryland State Department of Health
  Laboratory Permit #TB1491

  Registrations – New England Cryogenic Center is registered and governed by:

  U.S. Food and Drug Administration
  Registration #3002733251 and #3005374514

  Memberships – New England Cryogenic Center subscribes to the standards and practices of:

  American Association of Bioanalysts
  American Society of Reproductive Medicine
  Society for Cryobiology

  New England Cryogenic Center scientists are active members of:

  New England Fertility Society
  American Society of Andrology

• How do you package and ship specimens?

  All specimens are shipped in portable liquid nitrogen vapor tanks. These cryopreservation tanks, are guaranteed by the manufacturer to maintain proper temperature for 7 days from the date of shipping. Tanks are shipped via a priority delivery service.

• Will my insurance cover this?

  Perhaps – coverage for fertility issues varies among insurance providers. Please check with your insurance company to determine coverage. Please note that New England Cryogenic Center does not accept payment directly from insurance companies for any services provided – you will need to arrange for payment and seek separate reimbursement from your insurance company. We can provide you with the records and invoices you may need for filing a claim.

• How do I know whether you received my information?

  You can contact us at any time to determine the current status of your account. Our toll-free number is 1-800-991-4999.

• Does New England Cryogenic Center offer a buyback program?

  New England Cryogenic Center will not buy back donor vials. For vials kept in client inventory, if the vials are no longer needed, a discard request can be made, in writing, to release the vials. For vials that have left our facility we will not take them back into our inventory. Vials can be returned only if they will be placed in client inventory. An administration fee will apply for Vial Redeposits.

• Does New England Cryogenic Center offer a vial exchange program?

  We allow clients to switch active donor vials in their inventory for vials of another available donor. An administration fee applies. We will not accept for return any specimen that has left our facility.

• What is an ID Option Donor?

  A number of donors participate in our ID Option Donor Program. The program offers a way for children born from donated sperm to potentially have contact with their sperm donor once they turn 18. This program is attractive to some parents who wish to provide a means for their children conceived through artificial insemination to learn more about their sperm donor, should they wish to at some point in the future.

• Can I reserve specimen for future offspring?

  Yes. You may purchase extra specimens and store them with New England Cryogenic Center. An annual storage fee applies, contact us for details.