HOF 2007 Nominees > Assistive Technology
ShareStephen W.J. Seager
Dr. Seager invented the electroejaculation (EEJ) machine which revolutionized the treatment of infertility in men with SCI. Most men with SCI cannot ejaculate during sexual activity, and require some form of medical assistance to retrieve sperm for insemination. Prior to the invention of the EEJ machine in the 1980's very little was known about the semen quality in men with SCI.
Prior to the 1980's, most men with SCI were told that they would never become fathers. At the time, Dr. Seager, originally from Ireland, was a practicing veterinarian. He was familiar with a device to retrieve sperm from farm animals to be used for artificial insemination.
He worked with an engineer to modify this device to retrieve sperm from a wide variety of endangered species (see: Seager SW, Wildt DE, Platz, C: Semen collection by electroejaculation and artificial vagina in over 100 species of animals. Proceeding of the 9th Int.
Congress on Animal Reproduction and Artificial Insemination. 1980, pages 571-576). One day, a breeder asked if Dr. Seager could try his device to retrieve semen from a pure-bred black poodle that was paraplegic from a car accident. Other than locomoting by suspending his hindquarters on wheels, the dog was in marvelous health. Dr. Seager modified his device for use in the poodle.
The device worked successfully, and semen was safely obtained from the poodle and used for artificial insemination and breeding. From this experience with a paraplegic poodle, Dr. Seager wondered if anything could be done to assist semen retrieval in men with SCI who wished to become biologic fathers.
He again worked with the engineer, and, after many years of trial and error, developed an electroejaculation machine for use in humans. With this machine, Dr. Seager invented a method to safely and effectively retrieve semen men with SCI. To say this machine revolutionized the treatment of infertility in men with SCI is no overstatement.
With the advent of the EEJ machine, semen could now be obtained from almost any man with SCI. There ensued an increase in the number of clinicians working with these patients, and a concomitant increase in studies on the topic of semen quality in men with SCI.
These advances led to an entire new field - treatment of infertility in men with SCI. Dr. Seager's innovative machine paved the way for the current advances in this field. His machine was the gateway to hope for fatherhood for millions of men with SCI around the world.
The field has grown greatly since the 1980's, but it all started with Dr. Seager. I met Dr. Seager in the early 1990's when I entered the field as a trainee. He continues to be a tireless advocate for treating infertility in men with SCI. Dr. Seager is a most deserving candidate for the SCI Hall of Fame.