What Happens

How vasectomy works

A vasectomy works by stopping your body releasing sperm in the semen when you come (ejaculate).

After a vasectomy, you can still ejaculate but your semen will not have any sperm in it.

On the day of your vasectomy

Vasectomy is done at a GP surgery, sexual health clinic or hospital.

A vasectomy usually takes around 15 to 20 minutes.

The doctor will: :

use a local anaesthetic to numb your scrotum (the skin around your testicles)
make a small cut in your scrotum
seal, block or cut the tubes that carry sperm (sperm ducts)
close the cut, usually with dissolvable stitches

Sexual Health Advice

Throughout this series we have help and advice on staying healthy, dealing with Sexually Transmitted Infections, the risks of each type of the most popular gay sex and what to do if the sex you have is not consentual. The topics covered in this series include:

	This item was in brought to you association with NHS website. Follow the links above for more information and don't forget to check out OutUK's A to Z of Gay Health which features items on everything from relationships, sexual health, mental and physical conditions and how to stay fit. This week our topic is: L - Lung Cancer.
Photos: OutUK and LightFieldStudios.