Vasectomy

Prior to the procedure:

• Stop taking all aspirin, Motrin (ibuprofen), Aleve (naproxen) or other blood thinning products one week prior to your vasectomy.
• Arrange to rest and be off from work for 2-3 days after the vasectomy.

The day of your vasectomy:

• Carefully shave all the hair from your scrotum.
• Wear or bring close-fitting/supportive underwear that will support the scrotum.
• You may drive yourself home from the procedure if you do not require any anxiety medication, but if you do be sure to have someone drive you home from the procedure.

Post-vasectomy instructions:

• Wear close-fitting/supportive underwear for 2-3 days to hold the bandages in place.
• Use an icepack on your scrotum to minimize swelling for the first 24 hours (30 min on / 30 min off).
• Take pain medication as needed – continue to avoid aspirin, Motrin (ibuprofen), Aleve (naproxen) or other blood thinning products for one week after your vasectomy.
• You may take showers beginning the day after the procedure, but avoid soaking the scrotum in baths, swimming pools or hot tubs until the sutures completely dissolve (usually 10 days).
• Limit activity for the first 48 hours following procedure, avoid any heavy lifting, pushing or straining.

General Expectations:

• You can expect some bruising and redness at the site of the incision. The sutures in your incision will dissolve and fall out within 5-10 days. There may be some yellow or white discharge from the incision as the sutures dissolve, this is normal.
• You may notice a small open gap at the site of the incision after the sutures fall out, this is normal and will close over time.
• You may notice some firmness in and around the incision site, it will soften, flatten and return to normal within a few weeks.

Follow-Up Semen Test:

• A vasectomy does not make you immediately infertile, it may take 6-8 weeks (or as many as 30-40 ejaculations) for all the sperm to leave your body. To be declared clinically sterile you must provide serial sperm samples after the vasectomy for sperm analysis and have two consecutively negative sperm samples.
• IT IS CRITICAL THAT YOU USE ANOTHER FORM OF BIRTH CONTROL UNTIL YOU HAVE HAD TWO CONSECUTIVE SEMEN TESTS THAT SHOW NO SPERM.

Possible complications:

Contact our office immediately if you experience any of the following complications:

• Temperature (taken by mouth) above 101.5°F
• Significant increase in scrotal size.
• Redness or swelling that does not subside.
• Difficulty urinating.
• Blood spot on the dressing larger than a quarter.