Understanding Fertility Options for LGBTQ+ Couples

Coastal Fertility Specialists is celebrating our LGBTQ+ patients during Pride Month. We are committed to helping these couples create the family of their dreams using the latest assisted reproductive technologies. We believe in providing inclusive, compassionate, and comprehensive fertility care tailored to the unique needs of the LGBTQ+ community. This month, we celebrate Pride by highlighting the various fertility options available, including surrogacy as well as sperm and egg donation, and reaffirming our commitment to helping all families grow.

Couples will have an initial consultation with one of our physicians to discuss their medical history, fertility testing, family building options and financial planning. Whether it is selecting a sperm donor or sperm bank, arranging for egg donation, finding a gestational carrier, or discussing adoption, Coastal Fertility Specialists is committed to supporting couples through the entire process. There are many ways to create a loving family, and it is important to find the option that is best for you. Common fertility solutions for LGBTQIA+ patients include IUI, IVF, Donor Egg and Gestational Surrogacy.

For same-sex female couples with no apparent fertility issues, one option is performing an intrauterine insemination (IUI) with donor sperm during the woman’s own natural menstrual cycle. This is a natural and inexpensive approach giving pregnancy rates relatively equivalent to natural intercourse. If a fertility issue does exist, we have the option of using fertility medication in conjunction with an IUI. These types of treatments allow for a genetic link to the baby for the carrying mother. While an appropriate option for some couples, other couples may desire options where both partners can be medically involved in the pregnancy, and this can be achieved through what is called Co-IVF or Reciprocal-IVF. Our advanced reproductive technologies now allow for the use of one partner’s eggs to create the embryo and the other partner to carry the pregnancy in her uterus. If required, egg donation or using a gestational carrier is also an option.

For same-sex male couples with no apparent fertility issues, egg donation combined with the use of a gestational carrier is the primary option. For a shared experience, both partners can provide sperm, allowing for a shared opportunity at genetic linkage to the baby or babies.

In addition, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) recently adopted a more inclusive definition of infertility, now defining infertility as “a disease, condition, or status characterized by any of the following: The inability to achieve a successful pregnancy based on a patient’s medical, sexual, and reproductive history, age, physical findings, diagnostic testing, or any combination of those factors. And/or the need for medical intervention, including, but not limited to, the use of donor gametes or donor embryos in order to achieve a successful pregnancy either as an individual or with a partner.” We applaud ASRM’s new, expanded definition of infertility and hope that it leads to improved fertility access and care for all individuals, couples and families seeking to start or grow their families.

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