Cup method

The cup method is a method of artificial insemination and belongs to the group of inseminations . It is a very simple and at the same time mostly legal possibility to father a child without vaginal intercourse and without the help of medical professionals. It is therefore often carried out in a home atmosphere. Therefore, the term home insemination is sometimes used synonymously with the term cup method , although theoretically other procedures can also be carried out privately.

principle

Sperm is obtained by masturbating a sperm donor - often in a cup, which is where the name of the method comes from. The semen should be inserted into the vagina as soon as possible after ejaculation, as sperm cells die within a few minutes if the seminal fluid dries up and if it is cold. Body temperature is therefore suitable for storage or temporary transport. The ejaculate is finally sucked up with a syringe or something similar and then - similar to vaginal intercourse - inserted into the vagina and hosed down. Sometimes this is done by the woman's partner - who is not the sperm donor - so that this person takes an active part in the act of procreation. Analogous to the conception via vaginal intercourse, the creation of an orgasm is also considered to promote procreation with the cup method . However, the right time is more decisive: the best fertility (optimal conception) is determined beforehand by means of an LH test (see also follicle rupture ). Modern test systems also measure the estrogen level and thus identify earlier and more fertile days.

Probability of success

There are numerous testimonials according to which this method has been used to successfully induce pregnancies. However, there is no known scientific study that has, for example, measured a success rate per cycle for the cup method. The ratio of the success rate between the cup method and the natural method has also not been scientifically investigated, although it is generally assumed that the cup method does not lead to pregnancy at least more effectively than sexual intercourse. The well-known Dutch sperm donor Ed Houben, who has fathered over 100 children and who is regularly reported in the press, says that the cup method requires an average of about twice to three times as many attempts as the natural method.

The probability of a pregnancy induced by the cup method - as with intrauterine insemination (IUI) and with natural conception through sexual intercourse - also strongly depends on the woman's age, although the probability of success decreases with increasing age.

While the IUI values ​​vary from 3% per cycle (for over 43 year olds) to 20% per cycle (for under 25 year olds), 86% of under 25 year olds who have regular sexual intercourse will be in the context of natural conception and do not use contraception, after one year - presumably 12–13 cycles - actually pregnant, while in 40–44 year olds it is only 36% and in 45–49 year olds only 5%.

Legal

No permit is required in Germany to use the cup method. In addition, however, the method harbors numerous legal questions that have not been conclusively clarified and thus legal risks, such as the question of a child's maintenance claim or questions of liability in the event of complications against the sperm donor, but also the question of a possible right of access and information of the sperm donor towards the mother in the event a child birth.

literature

• Kirsten Khaschei, Tom Feibner: Hope child: ways and perspectives to fulfill the desire to have children. Stiftung Warentest , Berlin 2012, ISBN 978-3-86851-133-8 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Desired child. In: kurier.at. January 24, 2017, accessed December 31, 2017 . 
2. ↑ http://www.ksta.de/ratgeber/familie/co-parenting-wenn-fremde-mithaben-eltern-haben-23832730
3. ↑ http://www.ksta.de/panorama/-samenspender-der-mann-mit-den-102-kinder-44890
4. ↑ http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26636166
5. ↑ http://www.edhouben.eu/mediapool/81/813978/data/Ed_Houben_Annabelle.pdf
6. ↑ Helen A. Carcio: Management of the Infertile Woman, M. Sara Rosenthal: The Fertility Sourcebook, via http://www.babycenter.de/a9998/ausektiven-des-alters-auf-die-fruchtbarkeit

This article is about a health issue. It is not used for self-diagnosis and does not replace a diagnosis by a doctor. Please note the information on health issues !