FAQs - Vasectomy Reversal Information And Advice

Yes.  For men who desire to have a vasectomy reversal to regain fertility, we will gather as much information as possible by asking them to fill out the consultation questionnaire and send a free report.  Then a remote video consultation can be arranged for a fee of £100. You will have the opportunity to discuss with the surgeon the best possible advice about the likely outcome. It is extremely unlikely that we will be unable to go ahead with the procedure on the day. It happened in only once out of 650 patients who did not disclose a significant medical history. If you book the procedure with us, the charges paid for the video consultation will be reduced for the surgery fee.

We mostly advise men who seek surgical procedures for testicular pain to come for face to face consultation. In those men, the clinical examination will determine the choice of the micro-surgical procedure, either reversal or other appropriate procedures. Still, they can have remote video consultations at the first instance.

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Fill out the Questionnaire for the free report - Get Started 

Vasectomy Reversal Techniques: A Comparative Overview

Different techniques are employed for vasectomy reversals, with the most common being single, double, and multilayer vasovasostomy. In many UK facilities, the single-layer technique is preferred due to its simplicity and the use of thicker 6-0 sutures. The finer the suture, the higher its number. This method can be completed in approximately one and a half hours, making it cost-effective for hospitals. However, its efficacy can be compromised when there's a significant disparity in the vas-ends' diameter.

Our clinic prioritises the Microdot Multilayer Microsurgical Vasovasostomy (MMMV). This technique involves suturing the three structural layers of the vas, from the inner mucosa lining through the muscle layer to the outer connective tissue. We utilize ultra-fine 10-0 & 9-0 microsutures, typically used in eye surgeries. These sutures, almost invisible to the naked eye, ensure precise alignment with minimal vas trauma.

Our three-layer approximation enhances the chances of a perfectly aligned, leak-proof connection. If a blockage in the epididymis is detected through microscopic fluid examination, we perform a bypass procedure known as vaso-epididymostomy. This involves connecting the vas's outer end directly to a tubule in the epididymis, a procedure even more intricate than vaso-vasostomy. About 20% of our patients require this bypass on at least one side. It's worth noting that many UK clinics don't conduct the essential microscopic fluid examination, potentially impacting the procedure's success.

Anaesthetic Approach for Vasectomy Reversal at Best Life Clinic

At Best Life Clinic, we prioritize patient comfort and safety. Our vasectomy reversal procedures are performed using a meticulous local anaesthetic approach. The dosage used is comparable to that in procedures like circumcision, ensuring a virtually painless experience.

Upon your arrival, our experienced surgeon will conduct a consultation and thorough examination. The surgical incision line is then marked, and a local anaesthetic cream is applied to numb the area, preparing it for the procedure.

The preparation phase of the vas tubes on both sides can span up to 45 minutes, with the microscopic operation lasting about an hour for each side. Final preparations and closure typically add another 30 minutes. The preparation time might be extended for patients undergoing redo-procedures due to scarring or altered anatomy from previous surgeries. This makes the overall operation time vary, ranging from 3 to 4 hours.

Our local anaesthetic technique ensures a seamless procedure, allowing patients to stand and depart the clinic within an hour post-operation. Patient feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with a nearly 650 successful operations track record. Despite being more invasive, many have noted that the reversal procedure was less painful than their initial vasectomy.

For a deeper insight into patient experiences, we invite you to explore our feedback links. We've collected third-party verified feedback since 2021, with earlier testimonials on our website. Our approach guarantees swift recovery, minimal discomfort, and a 100% satisfaction rate.

If you come across claims suggesting vasectomy reversals shouldn't be done under local anaesthesia, it's essential to question the practitioner's expertise in local anaesthetic techniques for scrotal surgeries.

Links to see the feedback: 

To proceed further and  get started:     

We use special vasovasostomy sutures specifically manufactured for this operation by Sharpoint in the USA, size 10-0 and Nylon  10-0 for the inner layer and  Nylon 9-0 for the outer two layers and Nylon 8-0 for tissues around the vas tubes. These sutures are  expensive and they are the best for the vasectomy reversals.

In many other places they use 6-0 nylon which has a much larger needle and thicker sutures. Larger the needle and thicker the suture, more trauma to the delicate tubes (vas)

Will I feel unwell after anaesthetic?

No! Unlike procedures performed under General Anaesthesia, our vasectomy reversal is done under local anaesthetic. This means you won't experience the typical post-operative grogginess or discomfort associated with general anaesthesia.

From 3 hours to 4 hours. Fortunately for the patient this feels just like a few minutes.There is no painful effects of having a tube or laryngeal mask put in the throat required in  the general anaesthetic. 

You can go home about an hour after the completion of the procedure. You will be alert and comfortable towards the end of the procedure. You will be ready to go once you can have a light meal and a drink. If you must travel more than 2 hours to reach home, we advise you to stay overnight in a nearby hotel. 

Yes, but fortunately only the same sort of complications that can arise during any other  scrotal operations.  i.e. swelling. Swelling can be either early (day 1-3) or later day (5-10. Early swelling is due to haematoma, ie internal bruising or bleeding ( chance2-3%), late swelling is due to infection (much less than 1%). Fortunately elective surgery centres such as ours do not attract patients prone to hospital acquired infections.

It will be an achy pain for the first few days. We dont get any calls regarding pain as an issue.  This is because we have not disturbed the tissues to any great extent, we lift the vas and testis witht he coverings above the skin, repair it and return it with no trauma to the testis. Occasionally we may have to open the coverings of the testis to deal with difficult situations and challenges regarding the quality and length of vas. If there is a blow out, we will have to open the coverings of the testis  to perform the bypass. Even those men have not reported any greater bother with the pain. 

It is common to see bruises spreading up to penis and groin. The scrotum may feel lumpy for few weeks. This is due to thickening in the tissues called post operative induration.

No! We send you home with the only pain killers you will could possibly need, Paracetamol and Ibuprofen.

We will recommend use of low does painkillers for few weeks for those with higher likelyhood of inflammation. Private prescriptions will be provided for this from our end.

By law we must discharge you to the care of a responsible adult. It is  absolutely necessary you get accompanied by an adult since you prefer to  have sedation. Unless you have the procedure fully under the local anaesthetic without sedation, you need to have an adult with you to be discharged home. If you arrive at the clinic not escorted by an adult, you will have to avoid any sedation. But we can do the procedure without sedation and some men had it that way.

Not before 21 days post op. And this applies to ejaculation not just sex. The reason is that ejaculation pressurises the fluid in the vas which can force it’s way out through the unhealed joint(anaestamosis) causing scarring and narrowing of the joint. Ofcourse, one can not help night time spontaneous emissions.

We recommend semen tests at 2 monthly intervals after the op. We will give the request forms to have this arranged  through the GP or through a fertility clinic. The cost of doing the test  will have to be paid  by you as our procedure cost does not include this cost. It would be unfair to include this cost as many of our patients come from distant places and they will not be able to avail the facility of sending the samples to our local lab..

Reasons for failure of Reversals

There are two reasons for the failure of the Vasectomy reversal operations.

1.  The most common problem with reversal surgery is the formation of scar tissue at the junction. This is due to malalignment of the minute openings of the vas or  leakage of sperms from the joint. Removal of the scarred tube and microsurgically re-joining the vas is highly effective. Our method of multilayer microsurgery achieves the best possible alignment of the minute canals (openings )of the vas with the least risk of leakage.

2. The other cause of failure of reversal is due to undiagnosed blockage at the epididymis (blow out) at the time of the initial reversal. Unfortunately most clinics in the UK do not take the necessary steps to diagnose this and choose the appropriate procedure. We are capable of performing the bypass procedure called vaso-epididymostomy that is necessary to deal with the blow-out of epididymis.

One in ten patients we operate are for redo-reversal procedures. We achieve a overall success of 60% in establishing patency for the redo-procedures though variable depending on the factors such as time since original vasectomy and cause of the failure of the previous reversal.

The following information from your previous reversal may be helpful to more accurately predict the outcome after a redo reversal. Please write to the previous clinic or the surgeon to get the following information if you can.

1. Did they conclude the procedure on both sides?
2. What was the quality of vas on both sides and any difficulty during the procedure
3. What was the appearance (colour&texture)  of the fluid from the vas end attached to the testis on each side?
4. Did they do microscopic test of the fluid during the procedure? What were the findings of the microscopic tests if done for each side?
5. Results of the semen tests done months after the procedure

As you can see from above questions, this information should be available from any clinic that provides  proper reversal service as per current best standards.

Once you get this information, if you are interested to speak to our surgeon by a free telephone consultation, please fill the questionnaire at the following link.

Book for Free Consultation 

Certainly, yes. Your chances may be reduced slightly below the average if you have undergone PESA sperm extraction. 

Yes, because we will know the result of the sperm test done during the op and that the connection was successful. With a positive finding of sperms in the vas fluid your chances of returning to fertility are above 90%.

Not on any scientific basis. Most men do report some change for the better. But this is not our selling point!!

Yes, definitely. There is a chance that after some time, possibly from 6 months onwards that some narrowing of the junction may occur. We suspect that certain factors such as subtle damage inflicted on the vas by diathermy may make scarring more likely. We do not have definite statistics on this but estimate the chances of scarring being 30% over 5 years.

If you do, you risk developing blow out if you don’t you may have scarring. Scarring is treatable (by re-operation) whereas blow out is not. So on balance have it done now and have some sperm frozen. Or, change the plans, throw caution to the wind and have that family now!

Yes, that can be done.

Probably not. After vasectomy reversals, pregnancies do happen where the wife is 40 plus. The classic way of determining whether or not it is too late is to have the FSH blood test at day 0-3 of the menstrual cycle. If the level is within the normal range for your lab, then it shows that the woman may be still fertile.However there is steady decline in the pregnancy rate with increase in the age of the female partner.You may also wish to get some advice on the IVF option if your partner is older than 40 and you and your partner are considering to have only one child.

No, not too old at all. Men only very rarely slow down their sperm production. 

We prefer to work on a fixed fee basis so you know exactly how much you will pay and that there will be NO extra charges

Our current fees are;

• Remote Video Consultation via Zoom £100 ( This fee will be reduced from the operation fee if booking the operation with us
• Consultation is £240 (face-to-face consultation if required. Part of this fee  (£100) will be reduced from the procedure fee if you choose to have the procedure with us.
• Vasectomy reversal £4100.
• Re-do vasectomy reversal £4600.

This fee covers the following.
1. Full Consultation on the day or if you had a previous video consultation
2. Sedation and Local anaesthetic
3. Full procedure irrespective of the choice of procedure, i.e. Vasovasostomy or Vaso-Epididymostomy. We use the most expensive sutures that are designed for vasectomy reversals.
4. Multiple sampling and Testing of the seminal fluid from the vas during the operation
5. Discharge Medication to take home
6. Upto four follow-up telephone consultations or face-to-face consultations for twelve months to support you
7. Dealing with any complications in our clinic

We have not included the fee for post-operative semen tests or any supplements that may be advised to enhance the sperm quality. Since patients come to us from faraway places, they will have to go to a local fertility clinic to check the semen 12 weeks after the procedure.

Methods of payment:

• Credit card (No extra cost).
• Debit card (no extra cost).
• Building society cheque made payable to ‘Best Life Healthcare Ltc’
• Bank transfer (BACS) - Please get in touch with the clinic for details

For full details of the cost  and what the fee includes, please click here

Full terms and conditions of the fee will be provided before booking a procedure date.

No, just the standard, routine chance unlike IVF babies over whom there are questions over their long term health.

We can arrange a consultation within a week or two. The time to surgery is from 1-3 months. But we sometimes have operation slots at short notice, so give us a call.

Probably yes, but tell us all about your medical history and most importantly tell us all the medication you take. We will want to see you for consultation and discuss the matter then. Any medication that thins the blood such as Aspirin or warfarin is especially important and should be stopped 7 days before surgery with appropriate precautions to manage your underlying condition that needed the use of blood thinners.

If the reversal by our Vaso-vasostomy or vaso-epidydimostomy doesn't work, then the next option is to consider IVF unless there is definite signs of secondary failure after a good sperm count initially. If that is the case, then the failure may be due to blockage by scarring. In such selected cases, redo-reversal may be considered.

It is important only to consider a surgeon who uses microsurgery when considering a reversal. Some surgeons may use "loupes", which only magnify 2-5 times, which is inadequate. The operating microscope, which can magnify up to 25 times, is necessary for successful outcomes. If a surgeon rarely uses the operating microscope, they may not be experienced or confident in its use, as it takes practice and familiarity to be precise and competent.

Some surgeons use the microscope as a magnifier (4-6 times) and still use larger stitches (6-00 Proline or Nylon) with conventional instruments that don't require complex microsurgical skills and are quicker to perform. We use advanced microsurgical surgical techniques that are time-consuming but give the best chance to regain your patency and fertility. 

Please check out the link below about the standard of Microsurgery we offer at Best Life Clinic.

Schedule of fees

Video Consultation is £100, and Consultation in the clinic is £240. Part of this consultation fee of £100 will be reduced from the procedure fee when you book for the procedure.

This fee covers the following

1. Full Consultation on the day or if you had a previous video consultation
2. Sedation and Local anaesthetic
3. Full procedure irrespective of the choice of procedure, i.e. Vasovasostomy or Vaso-Epididymostomy, We use the most expensive sutures that are designed for vasectomy reversals.
4. Multiple sampling and Testing of the seminal fluid from the vas during the operation
5. Discharge Medication to take home
6. Upto four follow-up telephone consultations or face-to-face consultation for twelve months to support you
7. Dealing with any complications by us in our clinic

We have not included the fee for post-operative semen tests or any supplements that may be advised to enhance the sperm quality. Since patients come to us from faraway places, they will have to go to a local fertility clinic to check the semen 12 weeks after the procedure.

Methods of payment:

• Credit card (No extra cost).
• Debit card (no extra cost).
• Building society cheque made payable to ‘Best Life Healthcare Ltc’
• Bank transfer (BACS) - please get in touch with the clinic for details