Types of Reproductive Health Services
Types of reproductive services include sperm donation, egg donation, surrogacy services, sperm washing and genetic testing. These services have made the dreams of infertile parents longing for children come true.
Benefits of Genetic Testing
According to the National Human Genome Research Institute, genetic testing can prepare a family for prenatal and postnatal therapy for at-risk children when such testing is possible. It may also prepare a family for bearing and rearing a child with a disability.
Benefits of Sperm Donation and Artificial Insemination
Developed in 1953, sperm donation led the forefront of reproductive services. It has helped benefit families where the male's sperm count is low or non-existent. It has also served lesbian couples wishing to conceive.
Benefits of Surrogacy
The egg and sperm of the parents are fertilized and then implanted into the womb of a willing surrogate, allowing the newborn to have genes from both parents. Surrogacy is used when the mother is unable to conceive or carry on her own.
Benefits of Egg Donation
Egg donation provides mothers an opportunity to experience carrying their child to term when they no longer have eggs that can be used for reproduction. A donor egg is often inseminated with the natural father’s sperm.
Function of Sperm Washing
A potential father who is HIV positive may choose to have his sperm washed to rid it of the HIV virus so as not to pass HIV along to the child or mother in serodisconcordant couples.
Tags: genetic testing, Health Services, prepare family, Reproductive Health, Reproductive Health Services, reproductive services, sperm donation
