I'm 40 and I had a vasectomy when I was 22. Am I likely to have any major problems with the vasectomy reversal process?

Your age I have nothing to do with the success of a reversal

Published on Jul 11, 2012

Your risk is not greater than anyone else if you are in good health. However, your success rate is relatively low, and that is related to the number of years since the vasectomy.

Published on Jul 11, 2012

If you are 40 and healthy, vasectomy reversal poses no major health risks. Given that it has been 18 years since your vasectomy there is a higher chance of requiring vasoepididymostomy on one or both sides compared to those who have shorter intervals since vasectomy. The vasoepididymostomy requires rerouting the vas deferens to the epididymis due to an epididymal obstruction, rather than the traditional vas to vas connection. Based on a paper I published there is a 64% chance of requiring vasoepididymostomy on at least one side. This is important because success rates of surgery are not quite as good if a vasoepididymostomy is performed. Based on publications of prominent vasectomy reversal surgeons, a vas to epididymis connection may be successful as low as 50% of the time rather than 70% or over with a vas to vas connection.

Published on Jul 11, 2012

You're not any more prone to complications at your age as long as you're not taking medication that can prolong bleeding.

Published on Jul 11, 2012

Not any specific problems but, it is more likely that you will need to have a connection made to the epididymis as it has been 18 years. Your reversal can absolutely be successful but you need to make sure you are having surgery with a physician who is an expert in reversals and who, if your intraoperative findings show the need for the connection to be made to the epididymis, is able to do that type of connection. Not all who do "reversals" are able to make that connection. I hope this helps.

Published on Jul 11, 2012

A vasectomy reversal is technically still feasible, however sperm production given the length of time after vasectomy maybe delayed. It would be important to speak to a vasectomy reversal specialist like myself to talk about all of the options available during a vasectomy reversal to ensure all aspects of fertility can be addressed.

Published on Jul 11, 2012