With more and more couples considering permanent birth control options, Austin Urology Institute’s Dr. Koushik Shaw was recently interviewed by KUT 90.5 about the rise in vasectomies. Here’s what he had to say:
While vasectomies can be reversed, doctors, such as Dr. Koushik Shaw of Austin Urology Institute, don’t recommend people view them this way. The success rate of a reversal is not 100%, and in some cases sperm may not return to their original levels. The reversal is also more expensive and more invasive than the original procedure.
“What I tell people is it is reversible, but treat this as permanent,” he said. “Be pretty darn sure that our long-term goal is to not have children and we’re done.”
If it’s right for you, though, the procedure is one of the most effective routes to contraception, Shaw said. It’s also less invasive than female sterilization.
Shaw said his practice had to increase availability for appointments by about 50% on a weekly basis after the draft decision reversing Roe was leaked in May. While typically the practice did the operations only on Fridays, it had to open a second day to handle the influx of requests.
“I think people, you know, take birth control a little bit for granted, or it happens in the background and we don’t think about it so much,” Shaw said. “And what’s happened is all of a sudden — the news, the legislation, the Supreme Court decision — this got put to the forefront of people’s minds. … It’s made people rethink things.”
Listen or read the entire story over on KUT.org, and contact us if you’re ready to schedule a vasectomy consultation.
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