New No-Needle, No-Scalpel Vasectomy Technique Safe and Effective, Study Shows

Dr. Baum Is First & Only Site in Louisiana to Offer New Anesthetic Technique

New Orleans (October 26, 2005) - A new anesthetic technique for vasectomy that does not involve the use of needles has been shown to be safe and effective. Dr. Neil Baum is the first and only site in Louisiana to offer the new technique.

Among the 1,391 patients anesthetized using the no-needle technique, the average visual analogue scale (VAS) pain score for the injection was 1.65 of a maximum 10. The average VAS score during the surgical procedure was 0.67. No adverse effects were associated with the technique, reported the study, which was authored by Dr. Ronald Weiss of the University of Ottawa School of Medicine, along with NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell's Dr. Goldstein, who did the first no scalpel vasectomy in the U.S. in 1985, and Dr. Philip Shihua Li.

One straight-forward benefit of eliminating needles is that people don't like needles, says Dr. Baum, who performed the first no-needle case in the Louisiana in August 2005. In conjunction with no-scalpel vasectomy, developed by Dr. Li Shungiang in China in 1974 and introduced in the United States by Dr. Marc Goldstein and Dr. Phillip Li in the U.S. in 1988, the no-needle vasectomy helps reduce men's fear of the procedure and represents the next step in the evolution of minimally invasive vasectomy techniques.

Dr. Baum is an associate clinical professor of urology at Tulane Medical School and LSU Medical School.

No-scalpel vasectomy - unlike conventional vasectomy, which involves two scrotal incisions - involves one tiny puncture, resulting in fewer complications and quicker recovery time.

The MadaJet non-needle anesthetic, manufactured by MADA Medical Products, Inc., of Carlstadt, NJ, has been widely used in many surgical fields such as dermatology, cosmetic surgery, dentistry and podiatry, as well as for immunization. The FDA-approved device employs a high-pressure spray of anesthetic solution that is delivered through the scrotal skin and the tissue around the vas.

For more information, contact Dr. Neil Baum, www.neilbaum.com or call 504.891.8454.

Read more about vasectomy on urologychannel.com.