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Varicocele repair
Varicocele is the most common cause of male infertility. A varicocele is a varicose vein in the testicle. It forms when the valves in the vein, which are supposed to keep blood flowing toward the heart, malfunction. When the man stands up or strains, the blood goes back down toward the testicles, forming a varicocele.
A varicocele can be repaired relatively easily, by removing the section of the vein with bad valves. The removal is an outpatient procedure. Depending on the method used, it may take 30 minutes or a couple of hours. In either case, it can be done either under spinal anesthesia or general anesthesia. Some doctors may choose to use local anesthesia, but this is a lot less comfortable for the patient. The patient can usually go back to work the day after the procedure and go back to full physical activity in three to four weeks.
A man usually can't cause a pregnancy immediately after a varicocele repair, because he still has abnormal sperm. It takes two months for new sperm to mature in the testicle and another month for the sperm to work their way through the ducts and wind up in the ejaculate. A new semen analysis can be performed about three months after the surgery, although it may take longer for pregnancy to occur. The best results may not occur until six months or longer after the surgery.
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