Editing Insemination (section)

==Artificial insemination==
[[image:Blausen 0058 ArtificialInsemination.png|thumb|Artificial insemination]]
{{Main|Artificial insemination}}
Artificial insemination is the introduction of sperm into the reproductive tract of a female by means other than sexual intercourse for the purpose of impregnating the female.<ref>{{cite web|title=Infertility and Artificial Insemination|url=http://www.webmd.com/infertility-and-reproduction/guide/artificial-insemination|access-date=4 December 2015}}</ref> In humans, artificial insemination may be used when a woman or her normal sex partner cannot, for any of a number of reasons, conceive by natural means. A number of artificial insemination strategies are available, including [[intracervical insemination]] (ICI) and [[intrauterine insemination]] (IUI). Compared with natural insemination, artificial insemination may be more invasive, and may require professional assistance and medical expertise, which will have a higher cost.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Uffalussy|first1=Jennifer Gerson|title=The Cost of IVF: 4 Things I Learned While Battling Infertility|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/learnvest/2014/02/06/the-cost-of-ivf-4-things-i-learned-while-battling-infertility|access-date=4 December 2015|work=Forbes|date=6 February 2014}}</ref>

ICI attempts to simulate natural insemination, without the sexual element. It is painless and is the simplest, easiest and most common method of artificial insemination; it can be performed in the home, either by the female on herself or with non-professional assistance. ICI involves the introduction of unwashed or raw semen into the vagina at the entrance to the [[cervix]], usually by means of a needleless syringe.

The sperm for insemination may be provided either by a sexual partner of the female's choice or by a [[sperm donor]].<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Berkley|first1=Sean|title=6 Terrifying Things Nobody Tells You About Donating Sperm|date=12 November 2011|url=http://www.cracked.com/article_19497_6-terrifying-things-nobody-tells-you-about-donating-sperm.html|access-date=4 December 2015}}</ref> Donor sperm is most commonly used by lesbian couples and single women,<ref>[http://www.singlemothersbychoice.com/ Single Mothers by Choice.com]</ref> and by heterosexual couples when the male partner is suffering from [[male infertility]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Male infertility|url=https://www.andrologyaustralia.org/your-health/male-infertility|access-date=4 December 2015}}</ref> In some circumstances,    sperm has been collected from males  before they go off to war, or even  right after they have died, and used to inseminate their female partners.<ref>[https://www.health.com/condition/pregnancy/posthumous-sperm-retrieval What Is Posthumous Sperm Retrieval? How a Man Can Father Children Even After His Death]</ref> In some countries, there are [[Sperm donation laws by country|laws restricting and regulating]] who can donate sperm, who can receive artificial insemination, and what the legal consequences are of such insemination. Subject to any such  restrictions, donor sperm is available to all women who want or need it. Women who live in a jurisdiction that prohibits them from being artificially inseminated may sometimes choose to obtain it by traveling to a jurisdiction that permits it.

Artificial insemination has been and continues to be commonly used in [[livestock breeding]] as an efficient way of increasing production.<ref>{{cite web|title=Benefits of artificial insemination in livestock|url=http://animalsmart.org/animal-science/the-fields-of-animal-science/breeding-and-genetics/learn-more-about-artificial-insemination|website=Animal Smart|publisher=American Society of Animal Science|access-date=4 December 2015|archive-date=8 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208181934/http://animalsmart.org/animal-science/the-fields-of-animal-science/breeding-and-genetics/learn-more-about-artificial-insemination|url-status=dead}}</ref>