On the day of the procedure, our caring and experienced team endeavour to keep you as comfortable and relaxed as possible. The procedure takes around 2-3 hours.

What Happens During my Procedure?
The vasectomy site is located and the best site for suturing is located as determined by the preoperative ultrasound scan. During the procedure, the patency of the vas is first checked with fluid, which will exit through the penis proving the patency forwards. The fluid from the testicular end is checked under a scientific pathology microscope to look for sperm debris and live sperm. The two ends are then joined under the operating microscope that has a high magnification and a Xenon light source. The finest sutures (a third of a human hair) with a non-cutting, non traumatic needle are used to join the two ends.

If the vasectomy was originally performed in the right place (the vas) a vaso– vasostomy will be performed, and takes up to one hour on each side. If the vasectomy was performed quite low down in the scrotum, then it may have tied off the last part of the epididymis, and the only way to repair this is to perform an epididymo-vasostomy where the operation joins the much smaller and narrower epididymis to the remaining vas. The joins are made with three layers of carefully placed microsutures with accuracy.

Anaesthesia?
During the procedure we prefer to use a heavy twilight sedation to access all the benefits of a general anaesthetic without the risks. This enables rapid recovery and a safe discharge from the facility and avoids the risk of vomiting. This is favourable as most of our patients are from interstate and overseas and return to their hotels with their partners after the procedure. Our specialist anaesthetist is highly experienced with this type of anaesthetic and our patients have found themselves feeling very relaxed both during and after surgery.

Before your procedure starts Dr. Bradshaw will have a chat with you in one of our consultation rooms. Of particular interest and importance will be any history of drug allergy. By drug allergy we mean, a rash, asthma, swelling, anaphylaxis, hospital admission or certain other adverse reactions to a drug or medicine. You should write down a list of all drugs you may be allergic to and show it to Dr. Bradshaw during your consultation. Of critical importance is any history of an allergy to antibiotics, especially penicillin, amoxycillin, cephalothin, cephalosporins, keflex or keflin. Any allergy to Local or General anaesthetics or Sedative Drugs should be written down and shown to Dr. Bradshaw before the procedure.
You should volunteer any information to Dr. Bradshaw regarding any serious medical condition you may have had. By serious we mean heart attack, diabetes, asthma, stroke, ministroke, etc. Write down now any serious medical condition you have had and hand it to Dr. Bradshaw when you see him. If you smoke you should stop immediately if you can, otherwise tell Dr. Bradshaw when you see him before the procedure.
If you or any of your blood relatives has had anaesthetic problems of any type please write this down and show these details to Dr. Bradshaw during your consultation with him.

Will I have Pain Afterwards?
Generally not. Patients experience some mild discomfort in the first few days following the procedure. Panadol usually offers good relief.

Post Operative Instructions?
Our postoperative instructions are very important and a comprehensive summary of these will be given to you well prior to the procedure.

Even though our technique provides a strong anastomosis (join of the vas tubes), we do require that our patients assist with healing by following our post op requirements.

The first four weeks are most important:

• Avoid sexual intercourse and any type of “jiggly” activity – for example running, jumping, swimming, surfing, horse riding etc.
  
  
• Walking is fine.
  
  
• Work can be resumed reasonably soon afterwards. Some occupations involving heavy activity may require a longer period of time off before resuming.

How long do I have to stay after the Procedure?
As most of our patients travel from interstate or from overseas, we aim to make our appointments both flexible and efficient. We do require that patients remain in Brisbane or the Gold Coast after the procedure to enable a post operative review. Please discuss your travel plans with our team when booking your procedure.

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