# riding after varicocele surgery



## starry (Jun 9, 2009)

in a couple weeks, i go in for minor sack surgery (ouch) to try and fix a fertility issue a lot of guys have - varicocele (essentially varicose veins in your sack - the larger veins have a little too much blood, which heat up your boys too much, and it can effect sperm counts, quality of sperm, etc). Was diagnosed with it on a visit to a urologist.

So i'm getting it fixed since me and my wife been trying to conceive for awhile. This has like a 70% chance of making me all good, so no matter how nasty sack surgery sounds, i'm gonna go for it.

Sucks 'cause i'm riding a lot these days and loving it. 

This is a shot in the dark, but anyone had this done? hoping to understand how long i'll be out of the saddle (assuming a month...but i want to be careful obviously with this situation and such)


----------



## monogodo (Apr 26, 2005)

I had this done back in 1995. Follow the aftercare instructions. Rest as much as you can. With my surgery, they went in well above the scrotum. The doctor told me he spent over 30 minutes tying off veins, that my varicocele was the largest he'd ever seen. I stupidly went to a focus group panel 2 days later. It slowed the healing quite a bit. It took longer to heal from the varicocele surgery than it did to recover from my vasectomy.


----------



## jimbenimble (Jun 19, 2011)

Good luck. I had mild pain for years afterward and still do at times, twenty something years later. My surgeon and several urologists since have been unable to explain this. I didn't ride for two years, more on account of fear than anything. It hurt so bad before the surgery that I was paranoid about having a bike seat anywhere near my nuts. Though when I did get back on my bike I had no problems.


----------



## starry (Jun 9, 2009)

Thanks for the replies....

just had the microsurgery friday. it definitely flattened me there for a couple days, and i'm obviously still hobbling around. But i'm better than i was saturday, that's for sure. It's involved, and it's no "minor procedure." Not a picnic. Looks like (if i can see under the surgi strips), about a 1.5 inch or so vertical incision. Incision is upper groin, left of my unit. It's certainly swollen. Scrotum - left side - is swollen and it looks a bit black and blue where the veins were/are. 

Yeah, can't even imagine riding right now, but i want to freaking conquer any gun-shyness and get back in the saddle when i feel i can. My doctor didn't say i shouldn't....he just said "no exertion/heavy lifting for 2 weeks." i think i'll play it by ear, but i'm gonna shoot for getting back on my bike my late May i think. All depends i suppose.

Brutal sitting around now for 3 straights days on a gorgeous spring weekend with no riding or getting any workouts in, or even moving around. And i got a lot more time to go.

Oh well - people deal with a lot worse as well....Hope this is all worth it...if i end up being able to have a kid because of this procedure, i definitely have something to hang over his/her head if they're being a little sh*%


----------



## starry (Jun 9, 2009)

i'm just gonna bump this to see if someone else comes along that's had this and is a mountain biker...

feel i'm healing well, close to a week in, but going stir crazy with no excersize/riding....


----------



## starry (Jun 9, 2009)

monogodo said:


> I had this done back in 1995. Follow the aftercare instructions. Rest as much as you can. With my surgery, they went in well above the scrotum. The doctor told me he spent over 30 minutes tying off veins, that my varicocele was the largest he'd ever seen. I stupidly went to a focus group panel 2 days later. It slowed the healing quite a bit. It took longer to heal from the varicocele surgery than it did to recover from my vasectomy.


and yes, i should have mentioned, the surgery wasn't actually on my sack (thank god)....i have about a 1.5 inch incision just above the groin. From there he either went into the spermatic cord, or he pulled it out (ay yay yay) and tied the veins off then.....which isn't fun either. Nothing like giving yourself a hernia.


----------



## voodoo5 (Feb 2, 2011)

Is this more common for cyclists, or just men in general?


----------



## starry (Jun 9, 2009)

voodoo5 said:


> Is this more common for cyclists, or just men in general?


i don't think it's more common for riders - i think it's more men in general. Apparently 15-20% of us have them....lots of guys have them and are not bothered by them. In fact i wasn't really bothered and had no idea i had it.

I only found out because of my sperm analysis...if a guy isn't in pain from it, and doesn't have it affect their fertility for concieving, then i think doctors just recommend that they leave em.


----------



## starry (Jun 9, 2009)

though i should add - if the varicocele is significant/big, you should probably have the procedure done anyway, because it can affect testosterone levels (not hugely though), and it can cause testicle damage/atrophy eventually (again, if it's big enough)


----------



## starry (Jun 9, 2009)

2.5 weeks in, left testicle still a little sore, incision site raised and a touch inflammed, but doc just said i am healing up real good.

He said "no restrictions" on anything now...so that said, i'm gonna get on a bike soon and see how i do. Maybe at the 3 week point/3.5 week.


----------



## jmiah (Apr 13, 2012)

I've had two surgeries in that region and I'm left with a large...umm...sack forever. It's a hydrocele, which is fluid built up from the trauma of the first surgery which was about 15 years ago. I had to second to remove it but it didn't work. I say all of this to say that was 14-15 years ago and I ride fine to this day. I took about 6 years off but that was not because of this. Good luck and have one of these.

Seems like you have a case of being a little *****. I'm presribing you a heavy dose of man the **** up. | Get Well Ecard | someecards.com


----------



## tootingcyclist (Nov 22, 2016)

*Varicocele embolisation*

i realise this is an old thread... but had the varicocele embolisation nearly a fortnight ago for fertility reasons and mild pain. Just wondered if anyone had updates on how they got on after surgery. The location is still a bit sore but starting to get antsy about not doing any exercise! Can't quite face sitting on a bike just yet, mind.



jmiah said:


> I've had two surgeries in that region and I'm left with a large...umm...sack forever. It's a hydrocele, which is fluid built up from the trauma of the first surgery which was about 15 years ago. I had to second to remove it but it didn't work. I say all of this to say that was 14-15 years ago and I ride fine to this day. I took about 6 years off but that was not because of this. Good luck and have one of these.
> 
> Seems like you have a case of being a little *****. I'm presribing you a heavy dose of man the **** up. | Get Well Ecard | someecards.com


----------

