Quality Assurance

Exceeding Sperm Donor Criteria and Screening Standards

Fairfax Cryobank only provides sperm donors that pass the most extensive screening process. This criterion includes basic testing required by the accreditation and licensing organizations. In addition to the basic tests, Fairfax Cryobank goes above and beyond with the most state-of-art genetic and infectious testing. Read more about our specimen standards and licensure below.

Leaders in Donor Screening

We offer karyotypes (chromosome analysis) on all available donors, unlike other sperm banks who do not have all donors tested or do not do the testing at all.

Fairfax continues to advance genetic screening tests. Fairfax was the first human sperm donor bank in the United States to screen for genetic carriers of cystic fibrosis in all donors. All available donors have been CF tested to a minimum of 86 mutations, with most donors being screened for over 100 mutations. We are the only sperm bank that has all available donors tested to this standard. Our team was the first human donor sperm bank in the US to screen for carriers of Gaucher and Canavan carriers in Jewish sperm donors.

Our sperm bank makes most extensive use of the molecular genetic technique PCR (polymerase chain reaction) to provide screening to detect all of the following organisms: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) types 1 & 2, Human T-cell Leukemia Virus (HTLV) types I & II, Herpes Simplex Virus 1 & 2, Human Papillomavirus (HPV strains 16 and 18), Cytomegalovirus (CMV), Gonorrhea, and Chlamydia.

To review detailed descriptions of these and other tests performed on donors by Fairfax Cryobank, see Infectious Disease Testing and Genetic Disease Testing information at this website.

In addition, we provide Donor Medical Status updates for anyone to check if medical issues have come up with that donor or his offspring that put others at risk. Clients are encouraged to check before using specimens or embryos stored off-site.

Sperm Donor Specimen Standards

Interested in learning more about the different types of specimen vials and our promise of specimen quality? Visit the Specimen Information page below to read more.

Shipment Verification Process

Fairfax Cryobank Policy on Verifying the Accuracy of our Shipments

We recognize that trust and credibility are the basis for our success.  We feel that it is our obligation to make you aware of the policies and procedures we have in place to verify the accuracy of our shipments.

Shipping Specimens from Fairfax Cryobank 

When Client Services receives a call to place an order, the donor number will be verified at least two times with the caller.  The order is then approved by a manager who forwards the information to the lab staff.  The lab is required to have a minimum of two people verify all details of the order.  The lab staff verifies the information on the top and side of each vial along with the paperwork included in each shipment, required by FDA regulation.  All details must match the original details that were verified with the caller when the order was placed.  Once the order arrives at your clinic, your physicians’ office should verify the details of the shipment with the packing slip to be sure they match the vial(s) in the tank.

Transferring Specimens to Fairfax Cryobank for Long-Term Storage

Fairfax Cryobank provides a liquid nitrogen tank for the transport of your cryopreserved specimens to our facility for storage. Once the specimens are received at Fairfax Cryobank, two trained personnel verify and check-in the specimens prior to placing them into a long-term storage tank that is monitored 24/7 for safe keeping. The clinic and patient’s name are verified upon receipt of the tank and the tank is checked to assure it was sealed and the specimens frozen upon arrival. The specimens are inventoried by patient name or donor number, freeze dates, number of vials, and identification on the vials. The information is compared to the accompanying paperwork to account for an accurate inventory. Any additional paperwork included in the shipment (freeze procedure, thaw instructions, blood test results) is checked and placed in the account holder’s (patient) file. You will then receive an inventory confirmation letter listing your account number with Fairfax Cryobank and stating the number of specimens and types of specimens (sperm, embryos, oocytes) in storage.

Fairfax Cryobank Licensure

Fairfax Cryobank is Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Registration:

• #3004731690 (Fairfax),  #3005033855 (Austin), #3005287828 (Philadelphia), #3011417016 (Houston), #3000243835 (Roseville), #3005108367 (Pasadena) and # 1000477683 (VRL Laboratories)

Fairfax Cryobank Licenses:

• State of New York #GA010
• State of Maryland #TB699
• State of California #CNC80394

GIVF Licensure:

• State of Virginia/CLIA
• Molecular Infectious Disease Laboratory CLIA #49D0952503
  (Certified in Bacteriology, Parasitology, Virology)
• Semen Analysis #49D0886517
• State of New York #847912A1
• State of Maryland #465
• State of Florida #L80000186