In vitro fertilization, intrauterine insemination in certain cases involves the use of frozen biological material – sperm cells. Cryopreservation of sperm is produced in almost any reproductive center.

Frozen material can be stored in the sperm bank for a long time, but the exact period during which the viability of the spermatozoa is maintained is not yet clarified.

To date, the maximum shelf life of sperm, at which a productive pregnancy was obtained, was 21 years.

The need for cryopreservation of sperm occurs in such cases:

• Before treatment of oncological diseases of any organ, including the lymphatic system and blood formation organs.
• Surgical interventions on the male genital organs, for example, vasectomy.
• It makes sense to freeze the sperm of patients with damaged spinal cord, since in 95% of cases the ability to ejaculate is lost.
• The storage of frozen sperm is often resorted to by athletes and people whose activities are associated with the risk of injury to the testicles.
• In IVF, surrogacy, intrauterine artificial insemination and in vitro fertilization programs for single women, sperm may also be used after cryopreservation. Moreover, for the procedures, pre-frozen spermatozoa of the partner or donor are used (after defrosting them).

Cryopreservation of sperm does not affect the genetic information and the qualitative characteristics of sperm that have successfully undergone freezing and thawing. But part of the germ cells dies during thawing. Survives according to different data from 60 to 75%, which is enough for in vitro fertilization and artificial insemination.