A vasectomy is, basically, an interruption of the pathway of the sperm from the testicle to the ejaculate. The vasectomy, subsequently, works by interrupting the pathway. There’s a variety of methods to do this, but basically it involves a physical interruption with either clipping or cutting a segment of the vas deferens, which is the tube that the sperm use to travel from the testicle out to the ejaculate. Vasectomies are more than 99% effective. For instance, I’ve done close to 10,000 of these and, I can say that fewer than five have had sperm after about a year. Vasectomy’s probably the safest way of male contraception because it is an outpatient procedure, it’s done in the office, and mainly will take less than 10 minutes to complete.

Vasectomy reversals are a much bigger operation. The success rate of a reversal is upwards of 95% if done the first five years post-vasectomy. However, it’s more expensive, it’s not covered by insurance, and if you’re not sure you want a vasectomy, you don’t want to do it until you come to the point where you’ve finished your family, and you’re completely certain. The vasectomy has minimal risks. It’s done in the office, so you will have some discomfort while the procedure is done, because it’s done under a local anesthetic. You have some mild discomfort afterwards. And then there are rare occasions where you can have a little bit of bleeding, which means you get a collection of blood in the scrotum which will usually resolve after about two to three weeks.

There are rare instances, which I haven’t seen, but… basically involve persistent pain after a vasectomy. That’s probably less than 1%. And in my opinion, I have never seen it, so… The advantage of a vasectomy is basically being assured that you’ve completed your family, and you’re not going to have an extra mouth to feed. The disadvantage is, if you’re not sure, and you change your mind later, it’s a much bigger deal to do a reversal.

So, if you’re a male, and you’ve completed your family, please call our office and schedule an appointment with one of our board certified providers to schedule the office visit for a vasectomy consultation and subsequently schedule a procedure.