All patients are seen in consultation including an examination and counselling prior to vasectomy. If you decide to go forward with vasectomy, it will be booked on a separate date. There are no associated fees for consultation or the procedure - vasectomy is an insured service under MSP. Referral from your family physician is necessary before consultation.
While we do not have any surcharges associated with vasectomy, we ask that patients coming for vasectomy (or any other service) be considerate of the needs of others. There are many patients who require consultation and surgery for serious, sometimes life threatening, conditions. By not showing up or cancelling without due notice one may harm other people.
No shows to consultation or cancellation of the procedure without 7 working days notice will result in a $150 charge.
Vasectomy is a reliable method of male contraception. Consider it PERMANENT (reversals are possible but there is no guarantee of suceess). The goal of the procedure is to prevent sperm in the testes from reaching the penis. This is done by obstructing the vas deferens - the tube which carries sperm from the epididymis to the urethra. If you are considering vasectomy, you should think of this procedure as permanent. As mentioned, vasectomy reversal is not always successful and it is expensive (most insurance will not cover the cost which can be $5,000-10,000). An alternative to vasectomy reversal is sperm retrieval from the testis - the sperm are still being made after vasectomy.
Vasectomy is performed as a 20 minute out-patient procedure under needle anesthetic. You do NOT need to fast before the procedure unless instructed to do so by your urologist. Urologists perform many other types of scrotal surgery, including vasectomy reversal, and have access to the resources necessary to manage any and all potential complications. Therefore, urologists are the optimal physicians to perform vasectomy and manage any problems that can arise.
There is no known association between vasectomy and hypertension, dementia, coronary artery disease, stroke, prostatic, testicular, or neurological diseases. You will not notice any change in your erections or ejaculatory volume following vasectomy.
The approach used by the Metrovan Group is a Minimally Invasive Vasectomy (MIV). Technically, this is a slight variation of the No Scalpel Vasectomy (NSV). The results are the same and there is no need to cut the skin (though a small opening in the skin is necessary).
You may feel some 'pulling' and 'tugging' during the procedure but you should have very little to no pain. The skin and vas deferens are frozen. A small opening is made in the scrotal skin (usually only one is made, but sometimes a second opening is necessasry). The vas deferens is delivered, divided and the ends tied off (the surgeon may alter the details to fit your circumstances). There are 2 vas deferens so each side is done separately, though usually through the same opening in the skin.
There are 2 major complications that can occur soon after vasectomy - fortunately they are uncommon and affect less than 1 in 50 men
You can reduce your chances of having these problems by 'babying' the scrotum for the first week after surgery
You can shower anytime after the procedure. Apply polysporin or similar ointment and the opening in the skin will heal faster. It is normal to have a little bit of ooze of blood or clear fluid from the opening - this will usually settle within a week.
Fortunately, the vast majority of men who have vasectomy do not have any issues. However, a small number do. It is impossible to predict who might have a problem and in some cases the problems can show up years later.
It is your responsibility to go for the semen analysis and contact us for the results. Failure to do so could result in unintended pregnancy. You can find the lab nearest you by contacting the lab web page or phoning the lab directly. Links to Lifelabs and BC Biomed can be found here.
If you have questions that are not answered here, please contact us.
It will be normal for you to have some pain and bruising following your procedure (though many men will have no bruising).
If you have significant scrotal swelling please contact us as you may be developing a hematoma or infection. Some minor bruising is normal.
There are no dietary restrictions.
Avoid vigorous physical activity and intercourse for about a week after your procedure as it can produce post-operative bleeding. You may bathe any time after the procedure.
You may resume all of your regular medications after your vasectomy. If you are on blood thinners, you urologist will give you specific instructions but, in general, antiplatelets and anticoagulants (e.g. aspirin, plavix and coumadin/warfarin) should be discontinued about 7 days before surgery and can be resumed 7 days after the procedure.
Canadian Urological Association brochure on vasectomy
AUA Guidelines for Vasectomy 2012
Author(s): K Poon Major Revision/Review: January 2011