Male infertility is a growing trend amongst men and has to be given due attention. It is increasing at an alarming rate and needs to be curbed at the earlier stages itself. Male infertility can be due to a number of reasons. One such reason is Varicocele. Varicocele is a disease which occurs in men in the scrotum and testicle area. Here, the varicose vein inside the testicle is not able to send and receive blood from the heart which is a source of providing fresh blood to the reproductive glands. Because of which a person can witness terrible pain which can be either treated surgically or non- surgically. In Varicocele, the testicles can either be inflamed or shrank as the case may be.
This can be majorly caused due to unhealthy lifestyle or a person might have developed since puberty. It is diagnosed by a clinical examination which can confirm the presence of varicocele and an ultrasound examination may allow further evaluation of the findings. Once it is diagnosed and you know the severity of it, a decision of how to treat it i.e. surgical or non-surgical way has to be taken by evaluating all the pros and cons. It is important to know that testicular varicocele treatment without surgery can totally cure this disease. In fact, there are chances of recurrence of this disease post a surgery as well.
A non-surgical way to treat this is by way of Catheter-directed Embolization. It is a kind of treatment which is performed by an interventional radiologist using imaging to guide catheters or other instruments inside the testicular area. During this two-hour procedure a patient is kept relaxed and pain-free by way of mild IV sedation and local anesthesia. After this, there is a set procedure which is required to be followed. The steps are:
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The radiologist makes a tiny nick in the skin at the groin using local anesthesia through which a thin catheter is passed into the femoral vein which directs into the testicular vein.
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After this, the physician then infuses a contrast dye in order to get clear visualization in order to map out exactly where the problem is and which vein need to be blocked.
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By using a coil, an interventional radiologist blocks the blood flow in the vein which has a direct impact on the varicocele thereby reducing pressure on that area.
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By embolizing the vein, the blood flow is then diverted to the clear and healthy pathways by internally shutting off the vein which was causing the main problem.
This method of catheter-directed embolization is proved to be super effective, less painful, and less costly and there are more chances of the disease getting cured. Also, sperm concentration is said to improve by 83% in patients undergoing this treatment as opposed to people going through a surgery. Also, the average recovery time for this is around 2-3 days as compared to a surgical treatment. So before jumping to conclusions out of fear to treat this disease, make sure you research about alternative options, weigh the pros and cons and then come to a decision.
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