Vasectomy reversal

What is a vasectomy reversal?

A vasectomy seals or cuts the vas deferens, the tubes that carry sperm from the testicles, so that sperm no longer reaches the semen. A vasectomy reversal is a delicate operation, usually done with an operating microscope, that aims to rejoin these tubes so sperm can return to the semen and a man may be able to father children again.

There are two main techniques. A vasovasostomy rejoins the two cut ends of the vas. Sometimes a blockage has developed further back, in the fine tubing of the epididymis, and a more complex join called a vasoepididymostomy is needed instead. The surgeon often decides which is required during the operation, based on what they find.

A reversal can restore sperm to the semen in many men, but it does not guarantee a pregnancy. Success depends heavily on how long ago the vasectomy was done, the technique needed, the surgeon's experience, and factors in the female partner such as her age and fertility.

This guide explains what a reversal involves and how likely it is to work, so you can weigh it against alternatives such as sperm retrieval with IVF. It is not personal medical advice — discuss your situation, ideally as a couple, with a specialist.

Types & techniques

There isn't one single operation. The right approach depends on you — which is something to discuss with your surgeon.

Reversal vs sperm retrieval with IVF

The better option depends on time since vasectomy, the couple's circumstances and the woman's fertility. Many couples benefit from seeing both a urologist and a fertility specialist.

Preparing for your surgery

• Where possible, discuss the decision as a couple and consider the female partner's age and fertility, which strongly affect the chance of a baby.
• Ask the surgeon how long ago your vasectomy was, as this is the biggest factor in success, and what technique they expect to use.
• Tell the team about all medicines, especially blood thinners, and any previous scrotal or groin surgery.
• Stop smoking where you can and follow any pre-operative health advice.
• Arrange a lift home, time off work (often about 1–2 weeks) and supportive underwear for afterwards.
• Discuss the alternative of sperm retrieval with IVF/ICSI so you can compare options before deciding.

What happens

The operation is usually done under general anaesthetic. The surgeon makes a small cut in the scrotum on each side and finds the cut ends of the vas deferens. Using an operating microscope, they check whether sperm or fluid is present and decide whether a straightforward rejoin (vasovasostomy) is possible or whether a more complex join to the epididymis (vasoepididymostomy) is needed.

The tiny tubes are then stitched together with very fine sutures to line up the channels as precisely as possible. The operation often takes around two to four hours, depending on what is found and whether one or both sides are reconnected.

Most men go home the same day or after one night. The wounds are closed with stitches, and you will be advised on pain relief, supportive underwear and when semen tests will be done to check whether sperm has returned.

Is this operation right for me?

A good consultation should explore whether it's the right choice for you now — including reasons to wait or consider something else.

Before you decide

Use this as a shared-decision checklist. The aim is not just “can this be done?”, but whether it is right for you, now, with the risks and alternatives clearly understood.

Anaesthetic choices

The safest option depends on the operation, your health, the facility and your surgeon/anaesthetist. Ask what is planned and why.

The key thing to understand is the difference between sperm returning to the semen (patency) and actually achieving a pregnancy — patency is more likely than a baby. Both fall the longer ago the vasectomy was done, and the female partner's age and fertility matter greatly. Ask the surgeon about their own success rates, their experience with the more complex epididymis join, and what the plan is if the operation does not work.

Published figures to discuss

Success depends most on the time since vasectomy, and the figures below come from large surgical series, including the well-known Vasovasostomy Study Group, and from UK specialist (BAUS) information. They are averages: an individual surgeon's results and the couple's circumstances — especially the female partner's age — can shift the chances considerably. Patency (sperm returning) is consistently higher than the pregnancy rate.

These are literature figures, not a personalised prediction. Your own risks and likely benefits depend on your circumstances, your health, and how your care is carried out and followed up.

Recovery — what to expect, and when

Recovery from the operation itself usually takes a week or two, but knowing whether it has worked takes longer, because sperm can take weeks to months to reappear and is tracked with semen tests.

• Bruising and swelling of the scrotum settling over 1–2 weeks
• Aching or pulling discomfort when active in the early weeks
• Wounds healing with simple dissolving or removable stitches
• Waiting weeks to months, with semen tests, before knowing if sperm has returned

Aftercare

• Wear supportive underwear day and night in the early period to reduce swelling and discomfort.
• Use simple pain relief such as paracetamol as advised.
• Keep wounds clean and dry and follow bathing advice.
• Avoid heavy lifting, sport and cycling until advised it is safe.
• Avoid ejaculation for the period your surgeon recommends, to protect the new join.
• Attend semen tests as arranged to see whether sperm has returned.
• Look out for and report signs of infection, a large or painful swelling, or worsening pain.

• Supportive underwear bought
• Simple pain relief at home
• Time off work arranged (often about 1–2 weeks)
• Lift home organised
• Semen test appointments understood and booked
• Advice noted on when ejaculation and exercise are allowed again
• Clinic out-of-hours contact saved

Scars and how they heal

There is usually a small cut on each side of the scrotum, closed with stitches. The scars are small and generally fade well. Some bruising and swelling of the scrotum are normal at first and supportive underwear helps.

⚠ Get urgent help if…

• A high temperature, feeling unwell or spreading redness around a wound (signs of infection)
• A rapidly enlarging, very painful or tense swelling of the scrotum
• A wound that is bleeding heavily, opening or leaking pus
• Severe, worsening pain not helped by simple pain relief
• Difficulty passing urine
• Calf pain or swelling, chest pain or breathlessness (possible clot — seek urgent help)

Who to contact: your surgeon or clinic first (keep their number to hand). For urgent advice when you can't reach them, call NHS 111. In an emergency, call 999.

General guidance — it doesn't replace the specific advice your surgeon gives you.

Results & realistic expectations

A good result is sperm returning to the semen, confirmed on a semen test, and ideally a pregnancy. It is important to understand that these are not the same: sperm can return without a pregnancy following, and the female partner's age and fertility have a major influence on whether a baby results.

Success falls the longer ago the vasectomy was performed, and the more complex epididymis join tends to have lower success than a straightforward rejoin. Even after a technically successful operation, the join can occasionally block off again. Your surgeon should give you realistic figures for your situation and a clear plan for follow-up.

When a reversal works, the reconnection often allows more than one pregnancy over time. However, the join can scar and block again months or years later, so a successful early semen test does not guarantee lasting fertility. If a couple is not ready to conceive soon, this risk of late blockage is worth discussing, as is whether to store sperm.

Combining with other procedures

Some couples consider, or combine, vasectomy reversal with sperm retrieval and IVF/ICSI — for example, sperm may be collected and frozen at the time of the operation as a backup. Because a pregnancy depends on both partners, it is often helpful to involve both a urologist and a fertility specialist, and to assess the female partner's fertility, before deciding.

Follow-up & long-term care

Follow-up centres on semen tests, usually starting a couple of months after surgery and repeated over the following months to see whether sperm has returned and in what numbers. Wound healing is also checked. If the operation does not succeed, the team will discuss options such as a repeat attempt or sperm retrieval with IVF.

Revision and secondary surgery reality

• The join can scar and block again months or years later, even after an initially successful reversal.
• A repeat reversal is sometimes possible but tends to have lower success than the first attempt.
• If reversal fails, surgical sperm retrieval with IVF/ICSI is the usual fallback.
• The surgeon may switch from a simple rejoin to the complex epididymis join during the operation based on what they find.

Ask your surgeon for their own revision rate, what counts as a revision, and what is included in the written aftercare policy.

What good aftercare looks like

• A clear schedule of semen tests to confirm whether sperm has returned
• Honest, realistic discussion of patency versus pregnancy chances for your situation
• A named contact for problems such as severe pain, swelling or signs of infection
• A defined plan if the operation does not work, including IVF/ICSI options
• Advice on when ejaculation and normal activity can safely resume

What affects the cost

Costs vary a great deal between people and providers, and we don't publish prices. What matters is understanding what drives the cost and making sure your quote is complete. The main things that affect it:

• The surgeon's microsurgical experience and fee
• The anaesthetic fee and the theatre or facility fee
• Whether one or both sides are reconnected and whether the complex epididymis join is needed
• Use of an operating microscope and specialist equipment
• Semen tests and follow-up appointments after surgery
• Any sperm freezing or storage arranged at the time

• The surgeon, anaesthetist and facility fees and what is included
• Whether the price covers a one- or two-sided reversal and the complex join if needed
• Whether follow-up semen tests are included
• The cost of sperm freezing or storage, if you choose it
• What happens, and what it costs, if the operation does not work or needs repeating
• The policy if a complication such as infection occurs

On the NHS? Vasectomy reversal is not routinely funded by the NHS and is usually a private, self-pay operation; the chance of success and of a pregnancy should be discussed realistically before proceeding.

You're entitled to your total cost in writing — including aftercare and any revision — before you decide.

Consent traps and marketing red flags

These are not small details. They are often where patients lose choice, time to reflect, or realistic expectations.

Choosing a surgeon safely

• Check your surgeon is on the GMC Specialist Register for this area.
• Make sure they practise at a CQC-registered location, and look for membership of bodies like BAAPS or BAPRAS.
• You're entitled to a two-stage consent process with time to reflect (a cooling-off period). The surgeon who will operate must consent you — not a salesperson.
• Be wary of pressure: time-limited offers, discounts or deposits taken before you've had time to think are red flags, not bargains.
• You're entitled to your total cost in writing — including aftercare and any revision — before you decide.

How Vuemedics verifies every consultant →

Take this to your consultation. A good surgeon will welcome every one of these.

• How long ago was my vasectomy, and what does that mean for my chance of success?
• What are your own patency and pregnancy rates, and how many of these operations do you do?
• Are you able to perform the more complex epididymis join (vasoepididymostomy) if it is needed?
• Should we also see a fertility specialist and assess my partner's fertility first?
• Would it be worth collecting and freezing sperm at the time of surgery?
• What is the plan, and what are my options, if the operation does not work?
• Are you on the GMC Specialist Register for this area, and which Royal College or professional body are you a member of?
• Will you be the surgeon who carries out my operation, and who looks after me afterwards?
• What are the risks for someone like me, and how often do your own patients have a problem or need it repeated or redone?
• What does a realistic result look like — and what can this operation not achieve?
• What are my options, including waiting, doing nothing for now, or choosing a different approach?
• Can I have written information, results and aftercare instructions in a format I can use, including any accessibility or communication support I need?
• What is the total cost in writing, including any follow-ups, and how much time do I have to decide?

Find a verified surgeon for vasectomy reversal

Every consultant is GMC-checked and independently reviewed. Search by postcode and distance, or switch to a map. Ordered by rating, relevance and recency — never by who pays.

How we made this page

Medically reviewed by a GMC-registered consultant. Written in plain English, checked against NHS, NICE, GMC and relevant Royal College / specialist-society guidance, and kept under review. No clinic paid to appear on this page, and we publish no pricing. This is general information to help you prepare — it is not a substitute for advice from your own clinician. How we review our guides →

Source hierarchy: UK regulator and NHS/NICE guidance first, then relevant Royal College or specialist-society guidance, then peer-reviewed evidence for procedure-specific figures where available.

Sources & standards: BAUS — Reversal of vasectomy (patient leaflet) NHS — Vasectomy (male sterilisation), including reversal Vasectomy re-reversal: effectiveness and predictors of success — PMC Vasectomy reversal outcomes after testosterone therapy — PMC

Reviews reflect patients' experience of care, not clinical outcomes. For procedure volumes and outcome data see PHIN.

Last medically reviewed 2026-09-21. Spotted something wrong or out of date? Report an error in this guide.