Recovery of fertility after removal of polyurethane plugs from the human vas deferens occluded for up to 5 years

Int J Androl. 1992 Dec;15(6):465-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2605.1992.tb01139.x.

Abstract

The present study reports the outcome of operations to remove MPU plugs from 130 men who had had occlusions of the vas deferens for between 0.5 and 5 years. The female partners of all the men achieved a pregnancy over a period of 0.5-4 years after the reversal operation.

PIP: In China, physicians performed recanalization of the vas deferens in 130 25-45 year old men at the Shanxi Provincial People's Hospital in Taiyuan 0.5-5 years after they had undergone vas occlusion via percutaneous injection of polyurethane elastomer (MPU). The men had experienced the death or disease of a child or they had remarried. The surgeons were able to successfully remove all 260 plugs. The surface of the removed plugs was smooth. By 1 month after vas reanastomosis, the semen of all 130 men contained spermatozoa. The sperm count increased to more than 20 million ml-1 in 75% of cases by 1 year and in 96% by 18 months. Sperm motility ranged from 30% to 70%. Normal morphology was 45-75%. 85.4% of the partners became pregnant in the 1st 2 years following the reversal. All the partners conceived by 4 years. The birth weight, height, and chest and head circumference of 67 of the infants were no different from those of randomly selected infants in 9 cities in the same province.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Female
  • Fertility
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Polyurethanes*
  • Pregnancy
  • Prostheses and Implants
  • Sex Ratio
  • Sterilization Reversal*
  • Time Factors
  • Vas Deferens / surgery*

Substances

  • Polyurethanes