Q: I underwent a surgery for bilateral varicocoele. I want to know what precautions need to be taken after surgery. Will masturbation create any problem?

A:Precautions to be taken after varicocoele surgery would depend on the approach taken to perform surgery. It is advisable to have scrotal support for a couple of weeks irrespective of type of surgery. No additional precautions may be needed for microsurgical method in which operation is done on the scrotal neck, while some restriction of physical activity may have to be advised if high ligation has been done after giving an incision in abdomen as the latter involves going through the abdominal muscles to reach the veins. Laparoscopic method also requires limited physical overexertion for a couple of weeks after surgery, but is now a rarely used approach to treat varicocoele. If the surgery has been done to improve seminal parameters, you must know that such improvements may be seen only after three months of surgery. Masturbation is unlikely to have any adverse effect, except causing local discomfort, as the operating incision is close by.