Instructions Before Your Vasectomy at Gentle Procedures Toronto
The first step is of course to ensure that you have made a fully informed and considered decision. Please review information on our site and elsewhere and proceed only if you feel confident and happy with your choice. Consider a vasectomy to be permanent contraception.
Getting a Referral for Vasectomy
OHIP requires a doctor’s referral for vasectomy. We will schedule your procedure as soon as we get your referral from your doctor or a clinic. This step can be a small inconvenience but helps ensure that you make an informed decision – and OHIP pays the full cost of your procedure.
Click here to send us your email address and we will email you the referral form for your doctor.
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Preparing for Your Vasectomy
You have the option of planning separate consultation and surgery appointments, or you may choose to have both the consultation and procedure in a single visit to our clinic.
Once your surgery date is scheduled it is important that you follow the instructions below. Please also review the After Vasectomy information so you know what to expect after the procedure.
The Week Before Your Vasectomy
Starting seven days before the procedure, do not take any aspirin or other anti-inflammatory medication. These thin the blood somewhat and increase the risk of bleeding. You can still take other pain relief medication like Tylenol. If you are taking prescription blood thinners you should get medical clearance to discontinue them before the procedure.
In addition to aspirin and blood thinners you must entirely avoid Non-Steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs such as Ibuprofen, Motrin, Aleve, Advil, Naproxen, Diclofenac, and others. Tylenol (acetaminophen) is acceptable because it does not impact your risk of bleeding during and after surgery.
Don’t take aspirin and the other anti-inflammatories for your own safety. Our doctor may not perform your procedure if you have taken these drugs recently. If you have a medical requirement to do so, please discuss the situation with Dr. Sing.
Consider a vasectomy to be permanent contraception.
Two Days Before
Please avoid alcohol for 48 hours before and after the surgery.
Wash and then shave your scrotum two nights before your surgery. We recommend shaving then instead of the night before so that any discomfort due to shaving will have passed before you come into the clinic for your vasectomy procedure.
The image below shows where to shave, and you may choose to cut first carefully with small scissors prior to shaving with a safety razor or an electric shaver if that is your preference.
Shaving Before Vasectomy
For our improved visibility and for hygienic reasons (keeping hair out of the surgical area), we recommend that you shave from the base of the penis and along front and sides of your scrotum.
Avoid dry shaving; do it while showering.
We believe that this is an important step in performing a meticulous surgery.
The Day of Your Surgery
Wear very supportive underwear.
Please do not wear boxer shorts, as they do not provide the necessary support.
We recommend that you bring a small ice pack with you so that you can apply is immediately after surgery, and on your way home.
Wear comfortable clothing.
Eat a good breakfast, and be sure you are well hydrated.
You will feel much more comfortable during the procedure.
Minimize coffee, but have one if skipping it causes you material stress.
Please plan to arrive a little earlier for your appointment.
In Clinic Preparations
Our staff will usher you into one of the surgical rooms where you will prepare, lie back and relax.
We will carefully secure your penis out of the operative field, wash the scrotal area with antiseptic solution and place a drape on your body.
Our doctor will administer the anesthetic.
It is then time for the actual vasectomy, which takes about 10 minutes, with some variation depending on your anatomy.
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Consideration Before a Man’s Vasectomy
Choosing to have a vasectomy is a serious decision because it is carried out with the intention of creating permanent sterility.
Our experience with patients over the years has shown that some men who opt for a vasectomy later change their minds about their desire to have children after their vasectomy is done. Reasons for this include death of a spouse, death of a child, divorce, separation or just changing their minds.
Please review the questions and considerations below to ensure that you make a good decision.
Do I think that I might want to have more children?
If there is a possibility that you might want additional children in the future, you should not have a vasectomy. Your vasectomy will prevent you from conceiving a child and should be considered a permanent form of male birth contro.
Vasectomy reversal surgery is not a fully effective way to restore male fertility, and no one should use surgery to temporarily suppress fertility. A vasectomy reversal may be possible but the results are not certain. A vasectomy is recommended only for men who are certain they will not want to conceive a baby.
Am I a good candidate for vasectomy surgery?
If you are certain you don’t want more children, the remaining questions are related to your current physical condition, and there are not many contra-indications for a vasectomy procedure.
The main ones are to do with any pre-existing issues affecting your scrotum (hernia in that area, scarring) and your general ability to tolerate a minor surgery (abnormal blood coagulation, other pre-existing conditions). Morbidly obese men or patients with a short scrotum are not good candidates for vasectomy.
It is also vital that you follow the doctor’s instructions on post-operative care.
Personal circumstances that men need to carefully consider before choosing to have a vasectomy:
- Age – Are you young and have no children?
- Personal Stress – Do you think you might be making a hasty decision at a stressful time?
- External Pressure – Do you feel pressured into the decision by someone or by circumstances?
- Relationship Stability – Do you frequently question the stability of your relationship?
Permanent contraception will not likely help you resolve problems you experience in any of these areas. If you have decided that no matter what the future brings you will not want any more children, then vasectomy is a reasonable consideration for you.
How can I be sure I want a vasectomy?
- You don’t want to father a child under any circumstances.
- You want to enjoy sex without worrying about pregnancy.
- You want to save your partner from the surgery involved in having her tubes closed, which carries a higher risk and failure rate.
If this is true in your case, then a vasectomy may be right for you. Talk to your partner- it’s a good idea to make this decision together. Consider other kinds of birth control. Talk to a friend or relative who has had a vasectomy. Think about how you would feel if your partner had an unplanned pregnancy. Talk to a doctor, nurse or family planning counselor.
A vasectomy might not be right for you if:
You are very young, your current relationship is not stable, you are having the vasectomy just to please your partner, you are under a lot of stress, or you are counting on being able to reverse the procedure later.
Vasectomy reversal is a more complicated operation than the original vasectomy procedure. Reversal success rates are up to 70% and vary based on how long it has been since the original surgery. Gentle Procedures Toronto does not offer vasectomy reversals.
Can a No-Scalpel Vasectomy be reversed?
Yes, but reversal operations are expensive and not always successful. If you are thinking about reversal, perhaps vasectomy is not right for you. We definitely recommend that you consider vasectomy a permanent form of contraception when making your decision.
Pre-vasectomy Sperm Banking (cryopreservation) is a good idea in almost anyone considering a vasectomy.
Is now the best time for my vasectomy?
You will want to be certain that you are content with the number of children you have. If you have a child under six months of age, you might want to wait because of the “Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)”, a condition where a child can die after a few months of life for no apparent reason. Six months of age is often considered the threshold at which SIDS is least likely to occur. Although SIDS is not common (1 in 2000 infants), this might possibly affect the timing of your plans for vasectomy.
Should I Store Sperm?
Choosing to have a vasectomy is a serious decision because it is carried out with the intention of creating permanent sterility. Our experience with patients over the years has shown that some men who opt for a vasectomy later change their minds about their desire to have children.
The decision on whether to store sperm as a way to potentially conceive a child in the future is an important one. Conception using stored sperm is not certain, and the necessary medical insemination process can be costly. Cryogenic sperm storage is a good insurance policy, but is not a fully reliable method. If you are concerned to ensure future ability to conceive a child, then the vasectomy itself should be reconsidered.
In the unlikely event that you will want to have kids again in the future, and vasectomy reversal is not an option, or successful, sperm storage may be a way of allowing yourself to procreate again. Please consider storing sperm prior to your vasectomy.
Male Sterilization – Potential Regrets
Vasectomy should be considered permanent and non-reversible as reversals are not guaranteed.
You may regret your decision one day if it is taken prematurely. Younger men, especially those in their 20s with fewer than 2 children, are most likely to seek a reversal in the future, often citing that they thought it was the right decision at the time only to be disappointed when their reversal procedure was unsuccessful.
Men change. Some men are totally convinced that they do not want kids. In our experience, some men develop a different attitude about having children as they get older and their life situation changes.
Women also change. Some women who do not want children change their minds as they grow older. Some who have had bad reactions to pregnancy feel they would never want to go through another pregnancy only to change their minds after a few years.
Relationships can end. Despite how stable our relationships may seem, there is a chance that in a few years, you may be with a different partner who may have a strong desire to have kids.
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