Get the clip, not the snip
by MARTYN HALLE, Daily Mail
Many men are still wary of having the snip to end their baby-making days. But a new form of vasectomy - which is virtually pain free - could persuade thousands to change their minds.
Doctors have developed a vasectomy that does away with the cutting and cauterising which causes most men's eyes to water.
The new procedure - which is due to be launched in the UK at the beginning of next year - involves the use of a very tiny clip. It is placed over the vas deferens tube that carries sperm from the testes to the penis.
Using a clip also means that it might be possible to reverse a vasectomy successfully should a man's circumstances change later.
There have been no significant new developments with vasectomy since it was developed after World War II.
Doctors have always carried the operation by cutting a hole in the scrotum, pulling out the vas deferens tubes and then cutting them.
To prevent a leakage of sperm, the ends are sealed off by cauterisation. Men having a vasectomy can often smell the burning of flesh during the operation.
Contraception experts say that many men are put off by the thought of cutting and burning, and the often quite painful recovery they have to endure.
In trials using the new method, doctors reported that 76 per cent of men who had the treatment reported no pain at all, compared to just five per cent who said they had significant pain.
Surveys of men who have undergone a traditional vasectomy operation show that as many as 54 per cent report significant pain after surgery.
Since it was launched earlier this year, the Vasclip vasectomy has been carried out on thousands of U.S. men.
The method of vasectomy was thought up by Jim Segermark, an executive for a company making medical devices.
Married, in his 30s, with two young children - and not planning to have any more - Segermark was told by his wife to have a vasectomy.
But, like many men, he chickenedout at the prospect, mainly because he found the procedure so primitive.
'I just felt there had to be better way than cutting and burning in such a sensitive area of the body,' he says.
So, Segermark devised an alternative. It was a plastic clamp the size of a grain of rice. It snaps onto each of the two vas deferens tubes to block the flow of sperm permanently. Two years ago, Segermark decided to test his invention and became the first man to try the device.
AYEAR-LONG clinical study showed the procedure to be less painful and result in fewer complications than traditional vasectomies, where wound infection and swelling can cause problems.
It also promises to make a reversal easier. About 5 per cent of men who undergo a traditional vasectomy later change their minds.
And the number of men seeking reversals has risen with the increase in divorce and the desire of men to start a family with a new partner.
Although reversals are sometimes successful, reattaching the vas
a deferens is a difficult and expensive microsurgical procedure. And there are no guarantees that reversal will work. The cauterising technique used in the conventional operation can cause damage that blocks the free flow of semen once the tubes have been re-joined.
Studies are being carried out to find out whether sperm flow can be restored fully after the Vasclip is removed. Initial testing on animals showed no damage to the vas deferens after it was taken away.
With the traditional procedure, the post- surgical pain varies widely among men and can depend on the surgeon's skill and the method used. But the thirddegreeburns caused by the cauterisation make the vas deferens more prone to infections. Jim Segermark claims the only pain he suffered during his vasectomy was from his anaesthetic injection.
After the operation, he went straight back to work before returning home in the evening and putting ice on the wound. He was able to resume having sex with his wife two days later.
'The clip is so tiny you can't feel it at all. If we can demonstrate to men that this is a relatively painless procedure, and easily reversible, we might see more willing to take the plunge,' he says.
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