Post Mortem semen extraction: Legal and ethical aspects. Description of case and study in Colombia

• Main Authors: Samuel Barbosa, Diana Cárdenas, José Félix Patiño, Efraín Noguera, Ana María De Brigard, Sonia Echeverri, Roberto Esguerra
• Format: Article
• Language: Spanish
• Published: Universidad El Bosque 2015-01-01
• Series: Revista Colombiana de Bioética
• Subjects: semen post mortem; bioethics; in vitro fertilization; procreation post mortem; informed consent.
• Online Access: https://revistas.unbosque.edu.co/index.php/RCB/article/view/690/269

The extraction of semen post mortem (ESP for it Spanish acronym) for in vitro fertilization programs is a procedure that has been practiced since the 80’s. In the last decades the solicitations for ESP have increased throughout the world. This procedure has unleashed ample discussion about ethical and legal aspects in mental health, with important questions that do not yet have answers. In Colombia there have not been any documen-ted cases in the indexed medical or bioethics literature. In the ample majority of the countries, nothing has been said in the form neither of guardianship nor through regulatory means. Currently, extracting semen from a person after death is a scientifically possible reality. Is this ethically good and legally viable? The debate is barely in sight and its response, it appears, is still far away. This case report presents a historical recounting of the evolution of ESP in the world and a presentation of the case of the Hospital Univesitario Fundación Sante Fe. Presented as well is an analysis about the ethical implications of the donor’s will, of the soliciting party, of the child, and of the doctors, as well as of the legal and mental health implications in Colombia.