COMPARISON OF PUNCTURE VERSUS VASOTOMY TECHNIQUES FOR VASOGRAPHY IN AN ANIMAL-MODEL

Purpose: We determined the adverse effects of 2 different techniques o f vasography in an animal model. Materials and Methods: Unilateral vas ography was performed by a direct puncture technique with a lymphangio gram needle or through a partial thickness vasostomy technique in 2 gr oups of 10 adult Lewis rats using nonionic contrast medium mixed with methylene blue. Each rat had a contralateral vasectomy, A complete vas ogram was confirmed by visualization of colored dye in the bladder. An additional group of 5 animals with unilateral vasectomy alone served as controls. The adverse effects of these 2 techniques were assessed b y performing mating studies at 2 and 4 months after vasography. In vit ro flow through the vas deferens, sperm granuloma formation and histol ogy of the vas deferens at the vasography site were evaluated at sacri fice 5 months after vasography. Results: The fertility of the 3 groups , as measured by the mean number of uterine implantation sites, was no t significantly different at the 2 and 4-month breeding periods. In ad dition, we observed no significant decrease in the fertility of the 3 groups with time. Complete vasal obstruction was noted at sacrifice in 2 rats (20%) in the vasostomy group and none in the puncture or contr ol group (p = 0.476). The mean in vitro flow rates through the vasa of the puncture and vasostomy vasography groups were significantly lower than those in controls (p < 0.05) but not different from each other. The sperm granuloma formation rate was similar among the 3 groups. Con clusions: Our results demonstrate that both vasography techniques have a measurable adverse effect on vasal flow rates and a potential adver se effect on fertility. The direct puncture method had a slightly lowe r complication rate than the partial thickness vasostomy method and it may be the preferable technique for the inexperienced microsurgeon.