Abstract
Grafting of the male reproductive tract is an exciting new area of tissue engineering which may allow natural conception for patients with significant lengths of obstructed vas deferens. While stents had a significant and important role in increasing patency and pregnancy rates in the pre-microsurgical era, their role in the modern era of microsurgical two-layered anastomosis remains to be defined. To date, if the vasal obstruction is amenable to a primary watertight, tension-free anastomosis, microsurgical non-stented techniques remain the gold standard. Cases where a tension-free anastomosis is not possible because of the physical length of the obstruction remain problematic, but further research into tissue engineering in the form of implantable conduits holds much promise.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Barone MA, Hutchinson PL, Johnson CH, et al. Vasectomy in the United States, 2002. J Urol. 2006;176:232–6.
Magnani RJ, Haws JM, Morgan GT, et al. Vasectomy in the United States, 1991 and 1995. Am J Public Health. 1999;89:92–4.
Holman CD, Wisniewski ZS, Semmens JB, et al. Population-based outcomes after 28,246 in-hospital vasectomies and 1,902 vasovasostomies in Western Australia. BJU Int. 2000;86:1043–9.
Schiff J, Li PS, Goldstein M. Toward a sutureless vasovasostomy: use of biomaterials and surgical sealants in a rodent vasovasostomy model. J Urol. 2004;172:1192–5.
Castaldo G, Tomaiuolo R, Vanacore B, et al. Phenotypic discordance in three siblings affected by atypical cystic fibrosis with the F508del/D614G genotype. J Cyst Fibros. 2006;5:193–5.
Stricker H, Kunin J, Faerber G. Congenital prostatic cyst causing ejaculatory duct obstruction: management by transrectal cyst aspiration. J Urol. 1993;149:1141–3.
Engin G, Kadioglu A, Orhan I, et al. Transrectal US and endorectal MR imaging in partial and complete obstruction of the seminal duct system. A comparative study. Acta Radiol. 2000;41:288–95.
Handelsman DJ, Conway AJ, Boylan LM, et al. Young’s syndrome. Obstructive azoospermia and chronic sinopulmonary infections. N Engl J Med. 1984;310(1):3–9.
Thomas AH, Sabanegh Jr ES. Microsurgical treatment of male infertility. In: Lipshultz LI, Howards SS, Niederberger CS, editors. Infertility in the Male. 4th ed. New York: Cambridge University; 2009. p. 392–406. A very well written summary of current microsurgical surgical techniques.
Kolettis PN, Woo L, Sandlow JI. Outcomes of vasectomy reversal performed for men with the same female partners. Urology. 2003;61:1221–3.
Silber SJ. Microscopic vasectomy reversal. Fertil Steril. 1977;28:1191–202.
Vrijhof HJ, Delaere KP. Vasovasostomy results in 66 patients related to obstructive intervals and serum agglutinin titres. Urol Int. 1994;53:143–6.
Belker AM, Thomas Jr AJ, Fuchs EF, et al. “Results of 1,469 microsurgical vasectomy reversals by the Vasovasostomy Study Group. J Urol. 1991;145:505–11.
Vrijhof EJ, de Bruine A, Zwinderman A, et al. New nonabsorbable stent versus a microsurgical procedure for vasectomy reversal: evaluating tissue reactions at the anastomosis in rabbits. Fertil Steril. 2005;84:743–8.
Carbone Jr DJ, Shah A, Thomas Jr AJ, et al. Partial obstruction, not antisperm antibodies, causing infertility after vasovasostomy. J Urol. 1998;159:827–30.
Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Vasectomy reversal. Fertil Steril. 2008;90:S78–82.
Lipshultz LI, Rumohr JA, Bennett RC. Techniques for vasectomy reversal. Urol Clin North Am. 2009;36:375–82. The most recent definitive treatise on surgical techniques.
Kolettis PN. Restructuring reconstructive techniques—advances in reconstructive techniques. Urol Clin North Am. 2008;35:229–34.
Derrick Jr FC, Yarbrough W, D’Agostino J. Vasovasostomy: results of questionnaire of members of the American Urological Association. J Urol. 1973;110:556–7.
Kim HH, Goldstein M. History of vasectomy reversal. Urol Clin North Am. 2009;36:359–73. A concise and fascinating summary of the history of the vasectomy reversal.
Amelar RD, Dubin L. Vasectomy reversal. J Urol. 1979;121:547–50.
Dorsey JW. Surgical correction of post-vasectomy sterility. J Urol. 1973;110:554–5.
Montie JE, Stewart BH, Levin HS. Intravasal stents for vasovasostomy in canine subjects. Fertil Steril. 1973;24:877–83.
Fernandes M, Shah KN, Draper JW. Vasovasostomy: improved microsurgical technique. J Urol. 1968;100:763–6.
Rowland R, Nanninga JB, O’Connor VJ. Improved results in vasovasostomies using internal plain catgut stents. Urology. 1977;10:260–2.
Silber SJ. Microsurgery in clinical urology. Urology. 1975;6:150–3.
Owen ER. Microsurgical vasovasostomy: a reliable vasectomy reversal. Aust N Z J Surg. 1977;47:305–9.
Silber SJ, Galle J, Friend D. Microscopic vasovasostomy and spermatogenesis. J Urol. 1977;117:299–302.
Silber SJ. Vasectomy and vasectomy reversal. Fertil Steril. 1978;29:125–40.
Flam TA, Roth RA, Silverman ML, et al. Experimental study of hollow, absorbable polyglycolic acid tube as stent for vasovasostomy. Urology. 1989;33:490–4.
Rothman I, Berger RE, Cummings P, et al. Randomized clinical trial of an absorbable stent for vasectomy reversal. J Urol. 1997;157:1697–700.
Nudell DM, Conaghan J, Pedersen RA, et al. The mini-micro-epididymal sperm aspiration for sperm retrieval: a study of urological outcomes. Hum Reprod. 1998;13:1260–5.
Miller C, Shanks H, Witt A, et al. Oriented Schwann cell growth on micropatterned biodegradable polymer substrates. Biomaterials. 2001;22:1263–9.
Kamischke A, Nieschlag E. Analysis of medical treatment of male infertility. Hum Reprod. 1999;14 Suppl 1:1–23.
Romero-Maroto J, Escribano G, Egea L, et al. Transplant of a pediculate segment of vas deferens. Experimental study. Eur Urol. 1989;16:133–7.
Gilis J, Borovikov AM. Treatment of vas deferens large defects. Int Urol Nephrol. 1989;21:627–34.
Carringer M, Pedersen J, Schnurer LB. Experimental vas replacement by either vas or a vascular graft. Scan J Urol Neprhol. 1995;29:97–102.
Rutkowski GE, Miller CA, Jeftinija S, et al. Synergistic effects of micropatterned biodegradable conduits and Schwann cells on sciatic nerve regeneration. J Neural Eng. 2004;1:151–7.
Miller C, Jeftinija S, Mallapragada S. Synergistic effects of physical and chemical guidance cues on neurite alignment and outgrowth on biodegradable polymer substrates. Tissue Eng. 2002;8:367–78.
Labrecque M, Hays M, Chen-Mok M, et al. Frequency and patterns of early recanalization after vasectomy. BMC Urol. 2006;6:25.
Stahl BC, Ratliff TL, De Young BR, et al. Involvement of growth factors in the process of post-vasectomy micro-recanalization. J Urol. 2008;179:376–80.
Simons CM, De Young BR, Griffith TS, et al. Early microrecanalization of vas deferens following biodegradable graft implantation in bilaterally vasectomized rats. Asian J Urol. 2009;11:373–8.
Koneru S, Varma Penumathsa S, Thirunavukkarasu M, et al. Sildenafil-mediated neovascularization and protection against myocardial ischaemia reperfusion injury in rats: role of VEGF/angiopoietin-1. J Cell Mol Med. 2008;12:2651–64.
Acknowledgment
We would like to thank Kris Greiner for her editorial assistance in preparing this chapter.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Rosevear, H.M., Wald, M. (2012). Grafting Techniques for Vasectomy Reversal. In: Parekattil, S., Agarwal, A. (eds) Male Infertility. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-3335-4_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-3335-4_9
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-3334-7
Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-3335-4
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)