Before & After Your Vasectomy

Before Your Vasectomy

Please make an appointment with one of our doctors for your consultation where you can discuss any questions and concerns you or your partner may have. At that time, the doctor will review the procedure with you, perform an examination, and provide you with information to take home so that you and your partner can further discuss if a vasectomy is right for you.

Men taking Fish Oil, Aspirin, or anti-inflammatories such as Advil, Motrin, Aleve, Excedrin, or Naproxen should discontinue use 10 days before (and for three days after) the vasectomy since these medications can thin your blood and cause excessive bleeding. Instead, use acetaminophen (Tylenol®) during this time if you need to relieve pain.

To help you relax and minimize any anxiety you may have, our doctors will prescribe a sedative for you to take prior to the procedure. Please make sure to take the sedative exactly as prescribed and arrange for a family member or friend to drive you to and from the office on the day of the surgery. Please make sure you arrive 15 minutes prior to your scheduled appointment. Our doctors recommend using shaving cream and a new, disposable razor to remove pubic hairs. Patients should not use Neet, Nair, or any other depilatory as it leaves the scrotum itchy, red and swollen.

After Your Vasectomy

After your ride drives you home, take it easy. You can resume activity as tolerated. You do not need to put ice packs on your scrotum. You may experience a day or two of soreness, which can be treated with acetaminophen (Tylenol®). You may also have minimal bruising, but the discoloration should lighten and disappear. You may take a shower the day after your vasectomy surgery, but avoid sitting in water (no bathtubs, hot tubs, etc.) and avoid submerging yourself under water (no swimming, snorkeling, scuba diving, etc.) for one week after your vasectomy.

You may choose to wear an athletic supporter or jock strap for a few days after the surgery if you feel you would benefit from the support. The majority of our patients have told us that since they didn’t experience much discomfort after the surgery, they never felt the need to wear the supporter. However, if you do heavy work or lots of sports, you may be more comfortable with the extra support for a week or so after surgery.

Vasectomy has a success rate of about 99.8 percent, making it one of the most effective forms of birth control, but it isn’t effective immediately after the surgery. Although you can have sex as soon as three days after a vasectomy, you temporarily remain capable of fathering a child with the sperm that still remain in the ducts. It generally takes a few months to flush them all out.

Use a backup method of birth control until you are considered sterile via semen analysis. You’ll need to have two of these tests: the first at two months after your vasectomy and the second at four months after vasectomy. Once you have two consecutive tests showing no sperm, we will inform you that you are considered sterile and will no longer need to use other methods of birth control.

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