Japanese Doctors Raise Hopes of Healthy Babies for HIV-Positive Men

Two Japanese women have become pregnant with sperm from their HIV-positive husbands after doctors used a new technique to remove the virus before vitro fertilization. It was the world's first successful in vitro fertilization using sperm taken from HIV-positive men in a newly developed method, said Koichi Takakuwa, an assistant professor of gynecology at Niigata University.

"It was the world's first, although similar practices using sperm cleared of the virus to some extent has been done in European countries . . . such as France and Italy," Takakuwa said. Takakuwa said the problem with the earlier methods was doctors were performing artificial insemination even though they were not sure the sperm was completely free from the virus. The new technique was developed by Hideji Hanabusa, head of hematology at the private Ogikubo Hospital, in cooperation with Keio University. Both institutions are in Tokyo.

The husbands' HIV-positive sperm was put into a centrifuge to separate out the sperm and liquid containing the virus. The collected sperm was then subjected to the so-called "swim-up" method in which doctors remove only active sperm to further filter out the virus. The absence of the virus was double-checked before proceeding with the artificial insemination. Blood tests showed the pregnant women were free of HIV infection. Part of the expense of the procedure was paid by the state, according to an official at the ministry's disease control division. If their pregnancies proceed smoothly, the women will give birth later this year and early next year.

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