Hi - Had this procedure carried out 4 days ago and must say very little pain has been experienced. The only thing I do have is a tenderness when walking. Hard to describe but a bit like an aching muscle after overdoing it on the weights at the gym. It can also feel a little strange when sleeping on my side. It’s still early so hoping this will pass in time.
Hello guys, I had embolisation 5 days ago. It was a grade 3 varicocele on my left side. The procedure was honestly fine and the aching since has been fairly minimal - but I do feel it sometimes. I am abstaining from masturbating and the gym for the next week. Will keep everyone updated.
From everyone’s experience that has had the procedure, is sex/masturbation painful? For those that have had the relapse of the varicocele after the procedure, do you think there’s any reason why it relapsed? Thanks
I should also add that the main reason I had the procedure was not for the pain but because I did a sperm test which said I had a low count. Providing that in 3 months the varicocele has not come back I will do another test and see if it improves.
Hi All,
I just had my VE this morning, they ended up going in through the jugular at the neck as it’s supposed to be an easier route and quicker to heal.
Was all very painless, barely felt a thing! So anyone reading do not be worried about any pain, I casually chatted to the Radiologist throughout the whole thing. Ended up being only 1 vein that needed blocking and he used 2 coils, the second coil he wasn’t overly happy with as he thinks it could how unwound better, but this was just a aesthetic thing he would have liked to see on the imaging. It did the job.
Arrived at the hospital at 8:30am and was discharged by 11:00am! Very easy smooth experience.
Will update in a few weeks times once/if I start noticing any changes. Apparently I should be back to normal routine in 48hours.
Great to hear - went just like mine 3 years ago. Mine was also through the neck jugular vein. I had a sore neck for about a week but no problem after that. Let us know how it helps with scrotal pain. Howard
How is it going bro ? I had VE procedure done today . please share your experience.
do you still have scrotal pain?
Hi buddy, i didnt really have any pain before just discomfort when trying to sleep. Since the operation, I rested from the Wednesday to the Sunday. My consultant said I was fine to return to training.
Was back in the gym bodybuilding and a bit of CrossFit on the Monday with no issues. By the end of the week I was back to my normal self.
I tested my Testosterone 3 weeks after the operation, it has increased by 25%. Before the op I had readings of 12.1 & 14.3 nmol/l. It is now at 18nmol/l and it’s only been 3 weeks!
No issues my end. So far it’s going well and I’d recommend no one be scared of having it done. I have NO dull aches, side pain, back pain.
bro , i had bilateral VE on 6th of march . there is not much pain but little discomfort in groin and back . is it normal ? for how many days this pain lasts?
Give it 2-3 weeks it will settle. Rest up for the first week.
bro , did u experienced the same , i mean the pain in abdomen especially on sides and on back ? Also my 1st surgery was a failure . I am feeling very bad .
No not personally but I know someone who had it and had the same as you and it took two weeks to settle. He was told it was because the blood was finding new routes. You could also have some inflammation from the catheter which I believe can take some time to settle. Try taking anti inflammatories. I had mine after my surgery failed too and it worked great so hopefully you will be the same. My advice would be to try not to focus too much on it and do things to take your mind of it. I know how tough having a varicocle is both mentally and physically. If you are really worried though get in contact with the radiologist and they should be able to give more advice. Good luck and keep us posted.
Thanks bro.. 
bro , i’m getting abdomen and back pain. no scortal pain now , my VE was done on 6th of march
Hey, truly appreciate all the feedback I’ve been reading from this discussion. I’ve been reading many negative reviews from Varicocele Embolizations & its really re-assuring to read these positive experiences too. I’ve been debating on doing Surgery vs this embolization. After seeing my Urologist, he suggested that maybe I should look into doing a embolization because I have added risk being so lean & it may be more risky not having more body fat to cushion against my organs. I’ve also spoken to my radiologist & have been seriously considering doing this embolization instead of surgery. After doing 2 ultrasounds, apparently I have a grade 2 (even though I think it looks more like grade 3) with some definite aching & I feel its been affecting my testosterone levels (Total testosterone: 489ng/dl & Free testosterone: 60pg/ml. Im in my 30s). I would really like to hear more updates as this forum hasn’t been updated in 6 weeks. How’s everybody doing after their VE procedure? Can anyone please re-assure me of their experiences as I’ve been reading a lot more negative reviews than positive. I definitely plan to keep everyone updated with my outcome as there doesn’t seem to be too much reviews online. Thanks again!
Hi Tony,
So it’s been 10 weeks now since I had mine, and I have had no issues what so ever. I too am very lean and athletic, had the emobilization and have had 0 issues with pain or anything. I even went back to training heavy after 5 days.
As I said in my previous post, my testosterone has gone up, although I haven’t paid to have it checked again yet.
My opinion is that all these horrible stories you read online are from either really unfortunate people, or these people have some sort of health anxiety. Not enough people write up success stories, and why would they? Since having it done I’ve gone back to normal life and never thought about it! I only reply to this as I get an email when people comment and I know how worried I was.
My opinion is get it done, you won’t regret it. You’ve got this far to get it checked out etc, and if you don’t get it done, you’ll always be thinking about it!
Hi Tony - The VE procedure is certainly a good procedure but before you get it done check out an online blog by googling against varicocele embolization. The potential problem is that the coils used in the procedure can attach themselves to nerve fiber bundles over the years after the procedure which can lead to debilitating chronic nerve pain. There is now a new industry around removing the coils to relieve the pain.
There are VE procedures done in Europe mainly by IRs who do not use coils and they have had a good track record in no pain later on. But you have to get an IR who has done a lot of them. In my case, I used an IR who had no experience in VE w/o coils. My right side varicocele was fixed ok but the left side had some sclerosant get into the testicle which has left me with chronic scrotal that is far worse than the original varicocele!
The other option is to use a urologist who will just cut the spermatic veins that emanate from the testicle. But there is a high rate of recurrence of the varicocele after a few years as bypass veins develop.
I live in Canada and if I had to do it over again I would have flown to Europe and used an IR that specializes in VE without coils. The cost would have been worth it. Good luck.
Howard
Thanks Luke for the re-assuring post. I’m definitely leaning towards VE than the more intrusive sounding surgery route now. We’ll see how everything goes with all this craziness in the hospitals right now but hopefully I’ll still be able to do it soon because my health insurance is supposed to end next month. Wish me luck 
Lol Howard. That blog is exactly the reason that prompted me this post & all this fear in doing the VE.
Wow. I was just reviewing that blog which lead me to some Youtube videos and reading all the comments is seriously scaring me again. Looks like I have a lot more research to do. Damn.
Thanks Howard.
Hi We5t! Getting back to you after a whiIe I had my VE with coils in January. I had very intense side effects right after my belly was inflated and I had adbominal pain, very difficult to wear jeans with a belt. Now, a few months later, the tests seem fine, not perfect but fine, but this abdominal swelling and pain is back. I have no clue why…