Intra-vas deferens bupivacaine for prevention of acute pain and chronic discomfort after vasectomy

Abstract

We have studied the use of intra-vas deferens local anaesthesia in 70 patients undergoing vasectomy as day-case patients. Patients were allocated randomly to either a control or treatment group. In the treatment group, 0.5% bupivacaine 1 ml or 0.9% saline 1 ml was injected into the lumen of the right or left vas deferens in a randomized blinded design. The control group did not receive an injection. Patients were discharged with a questionnaire for recording visual analogue scores (VAS) for both the right and left sides to be scored on days 1 and 7 after operation. One year after the procedure a second questionnaire was sent out asking about the presence or absence of chronic testicular discomfort, its duration and any surgical intervention required to relieve it. There were no differences between the control group and the saline side of the treatment group in VAS scores on both day 1 and day 7 after operation or in the incidence and duration of chronic testicular discomfort (mean 30 (SD 53) and 34 (50) days, respectively). The VAS scores were, however, significantly less (P < 0.005) and testicular discomfort was absent on the bupivacaine-treated side.