Sclerotherapy

Description

• addIndications

  There are both nonsurgical and surgical options available.

  1. Open surgical ligation – performed by a urologist, is the most common treatment for symptomatic varicoceles. In this procedure, an incision is made in the skin above the scrotum down to the testicular veins, which are tied off with sutures. Patients of open surgical ligation can expect a two- to three-week recovery period.

  2. Varicocele embolization – a nonsurgical treatment performed by an interventional radiologist, is as effective as surgery with less risk, less pain and less recovery time.

• addBefore procedure - Preparation

  The preoperative assessment will establish if the interventional treatment is the best option for you.

  Prior to the intervention, the your doctor must be prevented about any history of allergic reactions. Blood tests are taken including hemoglobin level, coagulation, renal function, and other specific tests.

  The patient is admitted the day before the intervention, and he should not eat before the procedure.

  Your doctor will tell you if you should not use some drugs before the procedure.

• addAfter procedure - Recovery time

  You will be taken back to the recovery area on a trolley and be able to sit up. You will be given pain medication for incisional pain. The nurses will carry out routine observations, such as taking your pulse and blood pressure, to make sure that there are no untoward effects. They will also look at the skin entry point to make sure there is no bleeding from it. You will generally stay in bed for a few hours, until you have recovered when you will be allowed home.

  Since the procedure is minimally invasive, the postprocedural recovery is usually very fast. The majority of patients can leave the hospital the following day. Indications about recovery and postprocedural treatment will be clearly specified to all patients.

  While you should continue to walk and undertake light activities you are asked to avoid any vigorous exercise or heavy lifting for at least 5 days to allow the inflammation in the vein to settle down and stop the vein from re-opening. The veins in the scrotum (varicocele) slowly disappear in most patients over the next 8 – 12 weeks, in a minority of patients some small veins remain but symptoms improve in the over 90% of patients.

• addOther information

  Is it painful?

  No, usually, the intervention is performed under local anesthesia. You will be awake during the procedure and able to tell the radiologist if you become uncomfortable.

  How long does it take?

  Every patient’s situation is different. Generally, the procedure will be over in about an hour, but you may be in the X-ray department for a couple of hours. In some patients who have different anatomy or only a small varicocoele it may not be possible to catheterise the vein coming from the testis. If this is the case it will not be possible to treat the veins in the scrotum and the procedure will only provide diagnostic information to consider other forms of treatment (open or micro-surgery).