Counselling and Consent in Vasectomy

In the article by Mr Harris and Mr Holmes1 (October 2001 JRSM), I was particularly interested in the fairly rigid timing of post-vasectomy semen analyses. A valid point not mentioned by the authors nor by the subsequent correspondence is the fact that clearance of spermatozoa is not related to time following the vasectomy but rather the frequency of ejaculation—i.e. it is related to the frequency of intercourse. On numerous occasions in the vasectomy clinic where I work, patients with persistent spermatozoa very sheepishly admit to infrequent intercourse; the most recent case being three times per year.