Considering a vasectomy takes time and research. It is an important decision to make and all aspects of the process, including vasectomy recovery, should be carefully understood before moving forward.
Dr Lekich encourages all patients researching a vasectomy to carefully consider who and where they will receive their treatment as not all vasectomy treatments are equal.
Your vas deferens tissue is precious and limited in length so should be treated with precision and care.
Recovery from vasectomy
After your vasectomy surgery, you will be numb in that area for approximately 1-2 hours due to the local anaesthetic. We recommend applying cold packs to the area and rest for the remainder of the day. You may prefer to wear tighter underwear for support.
Over the next few days, you may have minimal or no swelling or pain. Panadol or Pannadiene work well here. Keep away from anti-inflammatories – eg Nurofen for four (4) days after the procedure. We recommend taking at least 2 days off work to ensure a smooth recovery unless you have a desk job. After this time you may return to work, however, you must avoid heavy lifting and strenuous activity for a week post-surgery. You will be able to resume sexual activity as soon as you feel comfortable to do so – usually around a week after surgery.
Remember that you will need to use another method of contraception until your receive clearance from your doctor after having a sperm test three months after the procedure. We will give you a request form for this on the procedure day so you can do the test in your local area. You need to have around 20-30 ejaculations to enable a clear result. A semen analysis is the only way you know for sure whether the procedure has been successful. This is a crucial part of the vasectomy process and it is important that you get this test done and receive the result from us to ensure that there is no risk of unplanned pregnancy.
Your vasectomy will not affect your sex drive or ability to have erections, ejaculate or the sensation of orgasm. However, some patients have noted a mild and occasional aching in the testicles during sexual intercourse over the few months post-surgery. Should pain persist, Dr Lekich will review with an ultrasound scan on site.
Side effects of vasectomy
Many men considering vasectomy as a contraception option are concerned about the potential pain following the surgery. As discussed above, a mild level of discomfort is considered normal after the surgery and can be well managed by pain medication and ice packs. A small amount of light bleeding and swelling around the incision may occur and should subside within a few days.
Studies show that approximately 20% of men will experience chronic pain for 3 or more months following the procedure. Less than 1% of patients may experience a blood vessel bleed in the scrotum that may form a blood clot. This may need to be drained by a doctor. In very rare occasions the cut ends of the vas deferens may re-join and cause an unplanned pregnancy. These complications do not feature in our practice where an open-ended technique with the reconstruction of the vas deferens is performed as part of the Vasectomy.
