A retrospective study on sperm banking: a Uruguayan experience

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the status of homologous sperm banking in Uruguay. METHODS: A retrospective investigation was performed on data collected between 2013 and 2015. Reasons for sperm banking, patient age, pre-freeze and post-thaw semen parameters, and recovery rates were analyzed. RESULTS: 623 samples were cryobanked between 2013 and 2015. Only 324 samples were considered for analysis after selection based on inclusion criteria. In most cases the samples were stored because the patients were undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatment (n=190; 58,64%) or for oncological reasons (n=113; 34,88%). The median age of bankers was 34 years. In the cancer group, 61.95% (n=70) of the subjects had been diagnosed with testicular cancer. Medians of semen parameters for both groups were above the lower reference limits dictated by the World Health Organization (2010). In fresh samples, a significant difference was observed in progressive motility (47% vs. 56%) between ART and oncological patients. After thawing, total motility (27% vs. 32%), progressive motility (19% vs. 22%), and vitality (48% vs. 56%) differed significantly between ART and oncological bankers. CONCLUSION: Semen banking has been performed successfully in Uruguay and outcomes are on par with international standards. Surprisingly, the semen parameters of the cancer group were nearly normal.