I would highly recommend that anyone interested in sperm donors get the
literature and donor listings of several banks, right from the beginning,
for comparison purposes. More questions came to my mind once I saw how
different the places are. I found a lot of differences between banks, on
policy, amount of testing, number of donors, amount of donor information,
and cost. Of course, a bank should do extensive donor testing, and quarantine
specimens for at least six months, then retest the donor, before releasing
the specimens.

Any reputable sperm bank will be licensed, possibly in more than one state.
I have heard that New York's is a tough one to get, and some people take a
NY sperm bank license as a mark of quality, BUT I am not sure about this. I
was told a large bank in NY was shut down in 1995.

You should look carefully at the specimen claims. Banks vary in the amount
of normal motile sperm they say will survive the thaw. Often this number is
given per a volume that is larger than the specimen volume, or even as
separate numbers (e.g., X% post-thaw motile, Y% normal-shaped, Z concentration
of sperm), so a little math may be required to compare banks. Note that
some banks talk about averages, others about minimums. And watch out for
whether they are giving fresh or post-thaw numbers. Post-thaw will always be
worse. Some sperm simply do not survive the freezing and thawing. Many banks
claim either an average or a minimum of 20 million motile sperm/ml post
thaw. This is because the American Society of Reproductive Medicine says a
normal fertile male will produce at least that. Also, does the bank guarantee
the specimen quality? In my case, the guarantee isn't as meaningful since
no one in my small town has the capability of doing sperm analysis to that
level in a few minutes' time. So I can't be sure that I'm really getting a
certain number of normal, motile sperm. But we do look at a drop under a
microscope to make sure there are lots of hardy swimmers!

From everything I've read, IUI seems to have a much higher success rate than
ICI, particularly when frozen sperm is used. If you're planning on IUI but
your clinic or area has no means of washing sperm (my situation), you would
need to order washed, IUI-ready specimens. This not only knocks out certain
donors (whose sperm doesn't wash well, or they donated before the bank did
washing, or whatever), it also knocks out entire banks which offer no washed
specimens. On the other hand, some banks do not guarantee specimen quality
if washing or any other procedure is done post thaw, so the availability of
washing facilities at your clinic may not be a factor.

I think most banks follow the American Society of Reproductive Medicine's
recommendation of no more than 10 offspring per donor. But at least one does
it geographically, i.e., they limit the use of each donor to a certain
proportion of the population in any area of the country. My impression is
that most donors get tired of being donors long before they reach their
maximum quota.

Once you get to the point of looking at actual donor profiles, you will
probably develop a strong preference for a couple of banks because they
include the information you are most interested in. Then you can get a feel
for the donor. I not only analyzed donor characteristics, I let my emotions
tell me whether I would like the guy if I knew him (kind of hard to explain,
and certainly easier to do if there's a donor essay). Not all banks have
donor essays or even short written responses to questions. A few do ask the
donor to say why he is donating. Of the profiles I saw, almost all had
monetary gain as the main, if not a contributing, factor. But several did
say they wanted to help others. Some forms include a space for a message to
the recipient, which can be very telling. (I swear, one donor's message was,
 "Invest in real estate--it's the best hedge against inflation.

Keep in mind that some banks share relatively little information on the donor,
while others tell you all kinds of things, such as whether the guy's earlobes
are attached or unattached. Some have both short and long profiles; costs
vary. At least one bank (Cal Cryo) will rate several donors' looks (and
describe them) for you for a fee. If you want to have your partner "matched,
" a few banks provide that service. But if you are set on a "yes" (identity
release) donor, or on getting his picture, your options are severely limited.
 

Since I was working with a doctor in private practice whose office closes
for lunch and is not always open late in the afternoon, I always worried
the delivery service would bring the tank when they were closed. That's why
I prefer getting the tank myself. If you work with a larger practice or a
clinic, you might not have this worry. Most banks (including Xytex) will only
ship to the doctor or clinic. But Cal Cryo is one of the ones who'll ship
to you. Dealing with them was easy, because I'd have Fed Ex drop the tank
off at a PostNet, and get it on the way home from work. (Mailboxes, Etc.
won't accept the tanks.) But even if they'll ship to you, most banks make
you have your doctor sign a form that s/he approves of your ordering sperm,
and that s/he will be responsible for the tank.