Bruising - is quite common
and of no concern. This will disappear with time and should not cause any symptoms.
Swelling - can occur
for one of three reasons. The most common cause is from body fluid that collects
in the healing tissues from standing (gravity), straining or injury (sex or getting
kicked) soon after surgery. This could include swelling of the epididymis gland
attached to the testicle (epididymitis). Swelling can also be caused by bleeding
or infection.
Bleeding - can occur
from the wound or can be internal. Bleeding from the wound is usually messy but
does not cause any symptoms. It is controlled by applying direct pressure to the
wound. Internal bleeding (hematoma) is quite different and can potentially be
quite painful. Though small hematomas may occur in about 1% of cases, only about
1 in 1,000 will be significant. There is no specific treatment for a hematoma.
The internal blood is progressively reabsorbed and disappears over several weeks.
In very rare circumstances, hospitalization and further surgery could be required.
Infection - occurs
in less than 1% of cases. This is treated with oral antibiotics. It can be quite
painful and can take several weeks to completely resolve. In very rare circumstances
intravenous antibiotics could be required.
Sperm Granuloma -
is a pea-sized swelling which results from leakage of spermatic fluid. This will
occur in most patients, rarely produces any symptoms and is of no concern. In
rare cases this may cause tenderness.
Post Vasectomy Pain Syndrome - is a chronic ache
in the testicles which occurs in about 1 in 1,000 cases. It occurs less commonly
with the open-ended technique than with closing the lower end of the vas. Although
sometimes controlled with intermittent or long term use of anti-inflammatory medication,
further surgery may be required in very rare cases. Further surgery is usually,
but not always successful in relieving the pain.
Persistence of Sperm
- or sperm remaining in the ejaculate even after the vasectomy. Some sperm is
usually present in the fluid for 3 or 4 months. In about .2% of cases sperm can
continue to be present for one of the following reasons:
- There is an unrecognized third vas
- The cut ends of one vas grow back together
- Two segments of vas are inadvertently removed from one
vas rather than one segment from each side.
Unfortunately, semen samples that shows no sperm after
3 and 4 months does not guarantee that one passage will not grow back together
at a later time. The risk of this, however, is extremely remote (less than .1%).
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