MONDAY, March 4, 2002 (HealthDayNews) -- Three years after the federal government proposed guidelines on sperm donations by gay men, sperm banks are still fighting to prevent the recommendations from becoming law.
Supporters of the recommendations suggest that gay men who donate sperm could unknowingly transmit AIDS to both mothers and children. However, critics, including many sperm banks, accuse the proponents of an anti-gay bias and say sperm banks already take sufficient precautions to protect people from AIDS infection.
"They're trying to regulate an industry that doesn't need regulation. There is no scientific reason to bar gay men," says Leland Traiman, a nurse practitioner and executive director of Rainbow Flag Health Services and Sperm Bank in Alameda, Calif.
The debate over sperm donations by gay men began in earnest in 1999, when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommended limits on donations by men who reported having sex with a man in the last five years. The limits would ban any donations by gay men that would be placed in a pool for future use by any woman using the sperm bank. However, the limits would permit donations that would be used to inseminate a woman who knows the donor.
The FDA's Blood Products Advisory Committee, which oversees sperm banks, examined the proposal at a meeting in December. Calls to the committee were referred to FDA spokeswoman Lenore Gelb, who says the agency hopes to make a final decision on the regulations by 2003.
Officials are reviewing comments from the public, she says: "We have to consider all of that, and that's what we're doing."
Sperm bank officials acknowledge it is possible, though extremely unlikely, for an HIV-positive sperm donor to spread the AIDS virus.
Sperm banks that accept anonymous donations typically freeze the sperm and put it in storage for six months. The donors are then re-tested to determine if they have developed any signs of HIV infection.
While HIV-positive people become infectious immediately after contracting the virus, it may take several months for tests to accurately detect the presence of HIV.
Some sperm banks waive the six-month policy in cases of "directed donation," in which a donor wants his sperm to go to a specific woman, such as a wife, girlfriend or friend.
Traiman allows waivers at his sperm bank in California's Bay area.
However, the California Cryobank in Los Angeles does not.
"We feel a recipient is a recipient," and all must be given the same protections, says Dr. Charles Sims, Cryobank's medical director.
No one knows how many gay men donate sperm in the United States each year, but Sims estimates the number is small.
Sims and Traiman are only aware of two sperm banks that allow anonymous donations by gay men. Traiman's sperm bank is one; the other is in Berkeley, Calif.
California Cryobank will accept sperm donations from gay men if they are destined for a specific woman.
"Many [sperm banks] will readily accept a directed donation from a gay man provided he's negative, he's sexually monogamous and his partner is not infected with HIV," Sims says.
Donations by gay men are unusual, but lesbians are increasingly turning to their gay male friends when they decide to have children, Traiman says.
"I deal with it literally every day in my practice," he says. However, in some cases, lesbians often don't realize their friends are inappropriate donors because they don't engage in strict safe-sex practices, he adds.
Sims says he could only support sperm donation by gays with certain restrictions.
"If it's going to be done, there should be full disclosure so both the physicians involved and women recipients are aware what the issues are," he says. "They should know these are gay men that meet the [federal] requirements for higher risk."
What To Do
If you ever want to donate sperm, you should know it's not as easy as you think. For instance, some sperm banks don't accept donations from short men. Read a list of qualifications from the California Cryobank to learn more.
The American Association of Tissue Banks accredits sperm banks. Read more about its activities.
