Paragon Fertility Centre has had great success with sex selection for Family Balancing and for sex-linked genetic disease prevention. Gender selection for Family Balancing can be accomplished using Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD), a form of prenatal diagnosis performed on early embryos prior to implantation in the uterus and initiation of pregnancy. Only embryos of the desired gender are returned to the uterus, which provides a nearly 100% accuracy rate if pregnancy is achieved.

How does sex selection work?

In Uganda, Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) is currently the only method used in practice to choose the sex of the baby.

You may hear about the other methods listed:

Sperm sorting – this is where sperm are selected according to whether they carry male or female chromosomes.

A sample of the chosen sperm is then used to inseminate a woman or create IVF embryos in the lab. The only method of sperm sorting that is currently permitted in Uganda is flow cytometry, which uses fluorescent dye to separate sperm carrying male chromosomes from those carrying female ones.

This method is not 100% reliable, so it is not used in practice.

Folklore and ‘natural’ methods such as the timing of intercourse to favour the conception of a child of a particular sex.

Selective abortion of foetuses that are shown by ultrasound to be the sex that is not wanted.