Artificial Insemination or A.I is a procedure consisting of the placement of sperm into the reproductive tract of a female in an effort to impregnate by means other than sexual intercourse. Fresh or thawed sperm is placed in the cervix (intra cervical insemination) or uterus (intrauterine insemination) artificially. A chemical know as a cryoprotectant is added to the sperm as an aid in the freezing and thawing process. A.I. is often used in animals to multiply the possible offspring of a prized animal and for the breeding of endangered species, but is a growing trend amongst humans. Prepared semen can be preserved for long periods by refrigeration, and it is frequently shipped over great distances.
In 1677, Lazzaro Spallanzani, an Italian biologist, discovered that both semen and an ovum are necessary for animal reproduction. He is known as the first to perform artificial insemination using a dog, in which the dog gave birth after 62 days. The first successful experiment on humans was carried out by British surgeon John Hunter around the same time. A patient of his with severe hypospadia, which is when the urethra does not come out at the end of the penis, making it difficult to impregnate his wife. He advised the man to collect his semen and injected it into his wife with a syringe. He did so and she became pregnant.
Intra cervical insemination(ICI), where semen is injected hight into the cervix with a needle-less syringe, is the easiest way to inseminate. It is a close replication of the way semen is deposited by the penis in the cervix. This is not the only procedure that may be used to increase chances of conception. Intrauterine insemination(IUI) is the injection of the