When it comes to birth control, vasectomies and tubectomies are the most permanent solutions. However, just because these procedures have the same results, it doesn’t mean both are equally good choices. Here’s a look at both of these surgeries—including how the two stack up against one another.
Vasectomy Procedure
During a vasectomy, doctors will numb a man’s scrotum with local anesthesia and make one or two small incisions. The vas deferens—the part of the male anatomy responsible for transporting sperm from the testes—is then severed, and the ends are either stitched or cauterized shut. So, while the man’s body continues to produce sperm, they are simply reabsorbed back into the body and not ejaculated.
Tubectomy Procedure
During a tubectomy, which is commonly referred to as a tubal ligation or “having one’s tubes tied,” a woman’s fallopian tubes are either blocked or cut entirely. This keeps her eggs from reaching the uterus, where they have the potential to be fertilized. This procedure uses spinal anesthesia and requires two incisions to be made below the navel, which allows doctors to have direct access to a woman’s fallopian tubes.
Comparing the Two
In terms of effectiveness, both vasectomies and tubectomies are about 99% effective. There is always a small chance that the procedures will not work as expected, but that risk is around one in a thousand.
While prices vary for both surgeries, tubectomies are generally more expensive than vasectomies. Vasectomies range anywhere from $300 to $2000, but tubectomies start at around $1500 and can cost as much as $6000.
Vasectomies are also much less invasive than tubectomies—which are considered to be major abdominal surgeries. Recovery times for vasectomies are shorter and the risk of complications is greatly diminished too. For example, women who have undergone tubectomies are at a higher risk of bladder problems in the future, while there is no known increase of risk in men who have undergone vasectomies.
Overall, in terms of both cost and safety, vasectomies are a much smarter choice than tubectomies. Unfortunately, there are far fewer men getting vasectomies than women getting tubectomies worldwide. This may stem in part from the unfair assumption that women should play more of a role in the birth control process than men. However, in the long run, these attitudes frequently hurt both partners of both genders.
