Treating a common cause of pain and infertility in men

There's a very common condition in men that causes low sperm count, pain and discomfort from dilated veins. It can even keep some couples from conceiving children.

The veins are called varicoceles and a doctor at Baylor St. Luke's said it affects 20 percent of men. 

Matthew Landry was one of those affected. He is young, active and it was the Houston heat that keyed him into his condition.

“It was a dull, aching pain that would persist when the weather was warm,” Landry said. “So, basically like March until November here in Houston.”

He said standing at parties would be exhausting and pain after exercise would linger for days.

“If I would go running on Sunday morning -- run a 5k -- I would have pain through Monday afternoon,” Landry said.

Dr. John Fischer, an interventional radiologist at Baylor St. Luke’s, said he's done thousands of procedures to fix varicoceles.

“We just make a tiny puncture hole in the vein at the top of the right leg,” Fischer explained. “We put in either a combination of coils and or special foam to do what's called an embolization.”

An embolization cuts off blood supply, basically killing unhealthy veins.

“The veins we're talking about are abnormal veins or abnormally dilated or incompetent veins, which is why standing upright leads to increased pressure because gravity pulls the blood down in the body throughout the day. So, we're not talking about treating or embolizing normal veins but abnormally dilated or what we call incompetent veins.”

Treating varicoceles can instantly decrease discomfort and men experiencing infertility may find this is the answer for trying to conceive.

“There have been studies that have shown a significant increase in sperm count and fertility after the procedure for those patients that were plagued by infertility as a result of varicoceles,” Fischer said.

Landry said he did not turn to the treatment for infertility but Dr. Fischer said 40 percent of men with infertility issues have varicoceles.

For Matthew, eliminating aches was what he was happiest about. He was awake during the procedure and pleased enough with the result to tell others to consider the treatment.

“I think you should know that the level of sedation involved, it might be a bit off-putting, but I could actually feel the improvement from the procedure while I was laying on the table,” Landry said.

To contact Fischer’s office about whether you are a candidate for this treatment, call the interventional radiology clinic at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center at 832-355-4112.