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Maternal (Expert Forum)
Sperm
Patient medical question and answer from The Maternal and Child Health Forum. Health topic area and articles about newborn care
Doctor's Answer
by hfhsmdrcs, Mar 17, 1999 12:00AM
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Dear Jennifer:
Sperms live for only a short time (hours) in the vagina because the acidity quickly kills sperm.
Sperms are released in a fluid that neutralizes the acid and allow time for them to swim into the cervical mucus which is a more supportive chemistry. Moving sperm can be found for at least 2 days and non-moving sperm can be found after many days, perhaps one week.
Sperms quickly move into the uterus and fallopian tubes: here they are again in a supportive environment and are capable of fertilizing an egg for at least two days.
I assume your question is an attempt to understand how often to have intercourse to maximize attempts at pregnancy: every two days; or to understand how long after intercourse pregnancy is possible: 2 days is the ususal answer. There are reports of women who have conceived a week after isolated intercourse, but such happenings are clear exceptions.
Keywords: sperm, how long they live
This information is provided for education purposes and is not a medical consultation. If you have specific questions, please speak with your healthcare provider.
