How often do vasectomy's go wrong........or do they????

Fiona59 · Mar 9, 2005

Just out of personal (well, husbands, and husbands of my girlfriends) knowledge. The most I've ever heard the swelling referred to was "the size of large kiwis. But then they all went to the same urologist and it was an office procedure involving cauterization.

Never heard of your posted outcome, but who knows? Everybody reacts differently.

TiffyRN, BSN, PhD · Mar 9, 2005

My husband had one, and I've had several friends whose husbands had them. Usually the worst I hear is needing ice and compassion. My husband however didn't get one for years due to a story from one of his long time friends. "Ronnie" had a routine office vasectomy. My husband called to see how he was doing (as he was considering having one). "Ronnie" said he was in horrible pain and had much swelling. I hate to say I don't know what caused his troubles in particular (though hematoma sounds like a good candidate). I do know "Ronnie" called my husband a few days later exclaiming "I lost one of the boys!!". Yes, apparently whatever happened to him ended in a "unilateral orchiectomy".

I'm sure your husband is probably in the clear as it sounds like they have relieved the pressure from the swelling.

Medic2RN, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Mar 9, 2005

Three men I know have had the procedure and told me about it. One had no real side effects or problems, the other man had a terrible experience of swelling (to the size you stated), but is able to now tell the story (and to hear him tell it - it's the funniest story I ever heard!), and the last man had a hematoma and a lot of pain. He is expecting his baby in 7 months. The vasectomy wasn't performed correctly.

Perhaps it's not as rare as I thought.

I hope your husband feels better!

:balloons:

aussiemum · Mar 9, 2005

thanks for your reply's. hubby is still in alot of pain. swelling is going down slowly. he has had a very bad experience and i feel kind of guilty for asking him to do it. what was supposed to be simple routine procedure has turned into something quite dramatic. he can only get better from here. i forgot to tell you he was bruised (very dark purple) from his belly button down his scrotum all in his groin right out to his hips. that thankfully has started to heal very quick. thanks again for your your imput.

robyn

zenman · Mar 9, 2005

I had mine done under a local cause I had to drive myself home! Just had a little bleeding due to all the vascularity required for my plumbing. An Air Force friend, however, who was operated on by a military butcher, called me to tell me that he wished he was a dog so he could lick his own balls! :rotfl:

SharonH, RN · Mar 9, 2005

My husband had one without incident. He didn't even want to use the ice and he never took a pain pill. 3 of his friends also had one without any problems.

allnurses Guide · Mar 9, 2005

My husband had one without incident. He didn't even want to use the ice and he never took a pain pill. 3 of his friends also had one without any problems.

My husband's was completely uneventful as well. However he avoided getting one for years due to friend's bad experiences and stories.

Which is why we have a three year old . . :)

My husband got his when I was 4 months pregnant. Frozen peas to the groin on the way home and he laid on the couch for a day just to be sure he didn't swell. No pain meds. No big deal.

Sorry about your husband's experience . . . . we went to a urologist by the way . . my husband's friends went to GP's . . . maybe the difference is between docs who do the procedure all the time and those who do not.

steph

CrunchRN, ADN, RN · Mar 9, 2005

My brother had the same problems last year. He had to be hospitalized also. He has had the procedure revised 3 times. Apparently he has an extra Vas Deferens and this abnormality caused much more difficulty. He had a baby after the 1st procedure (with the help of his wife) so apparently he recovered from the trauma - :rotfl: LOL! We are all hoping that after his next sperm check he will finally be sterile. P.S. Not to worry - that baby looks just like him!

Achoo!, LPN · Mar 9, 2005

Yes, we had a patient in clinic who got his wife pregnant after the procedure. He also had 3 vas deferens. Follow-up sperm counts are extremely important!

Trauma Columnist · Mar 9, 2005

Oops

AdobeRN · Mar 9, 2005

My husbands was also uneventful. I do remember the doctor telling him to make sure he laid down as much as possible with an ice pack on the area for at least 2 days to prevent swelling problems. As a joke the doctor wrote a prescription for "ice cold 6-pack placed between the legs q hour" .