Dr. K and her Patients in the News
MicroSort – Gender Selection – Choose the Sex of Your Next Baby-KSAT Channel 12 NEWS
02-07-05
Have you ever wished you choose the sex of your next child? Well there is technology now being study to do just that. It’s called MicroSort. It is the sperm that determines the baby’s sex. About 50% carry the female or the X chromosome. The other 50% carry the male or Y chromosome. “We have a lot of people calling about it,” said Dr. Kristiansen. Dr. Kristiansen a Houston fertility specialist offers a new option for parents, a way to choose the sex of their baby. It’s called MicroSort. “MicroSort is to sort the separate the sperm in to male or female sperm to increase the chance that the offspring would be female or male gender,” said Dr. Kristiansen.
MicroSort is only available through the Genetics and IVF Institute in Fairfax, VA. Their method now in FDA clinical trial, is based on the fact that the female chromosome sperm is substantially larger than the Y chromosome sperm. They are separated by something call flow cytometry. “We have the couple come in, the husband will give us a sperm sample that we can freeze, and ship to MicroSort for the separation,” said Dr. Kristiansen.
When the sperm is separated is sent back, Dr. Kristiansen uses it during In vitro fertilization. “The separation process is just below 80% success rate to get a male child and just above that to get a female child,” said Dr. Kristiansen. Couples who want MicroSort for family balancing must already have a child in order to qualify. It is also available to couples who are carriers of certain genetic disorders. The cost including IVF is about $10,000.00.
UPDATE: The reporter misquoted the cost for IVF with MicroSort, as of 05-05 the fee is approximately *$13,500.00. The current statistics on MicroSort are as follows:
XSORT®
XSORT® to increase the probability of conceiving a girl has resulted in an average of 88% X-bearing (female) sperm in the enriched specimen and 91% of the babies have been female. (295/325)
YSORT®
YSORT® to increase the probability of conceiving a boy has resulted in an average of 73% Y-bearing (male) sperm in the enriched specimen and 76% of the babies have been male. (39/51)
*All fees are subject to change over time. Please contact the office for the current price.