Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

SCIENCE AND SOCIETY

Vasectomy: is the apparent decline real or not?

Trends in vasectomy use are controversial, but rates might be declining over time. Several factors could contribute to this apparent decrease, which warrant consideration before definitive conclusions are made.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Relevant articles

Open Access articles citing this article.

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Sheynkin, Y. R. History of vasectomy. Urol. Clin. North Am. 36, 285–294 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Li, S. Q., Goldstein, M., Zhu, J. & Huber, D. The no-scalpel vasectomy. J. Urol. 145, 341–344 (1991).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Haldar, N., Cranston, D., Turner, E., MacKenzie, I. & Guillebaud, J. How reliable is a vasectomy? Long-term follow-up of vasectomised men. Lancet 356, 43–44 (2000).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Kavanaugh, M. L. & Jerman, J. Contraceptive method use in the United States: trends and characteristics between 2008, 2012 and 2014. Contraception 97, 14–21 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Balasch, J. & Gratacós, E. Delayed childbearing: effects on fertility and the outcome of pregnancy. Fetal Diagn. Ther. 29, 263–273 (2011).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Zhang, X. & Eisenberg, M. L. Vasectomy utilization in men aged 18–45 declined between 2002 and 2017: results from the United States National Survey for Family Growth data. Andrology https://doi.org/10.1111/andr.13093 (2021).

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Eisenberg, M. L. & Lipshultz, L. I. Estimating the number of vasectomies performed annually in the United States: data from the National Survey of Family Growth. J. Urol. 184, 2068–2072 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Chan, L. M. & Westhoff, C. L. Tubal sterilization trends in the United States. Fertil. Steril. 94, 1–6 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Sharma, V. et al. Relating economic conditions to vasectomy and vasectomy reversal frequencies: a multi-institutional study. J. Urol. 191, 1835–1840 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Bricker, D. Bye, bye, baby? Birthrates are declining globally–here’s why it matters. World Economic Forum https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/06/birthrates-declining-global-fertility-decline-empty-planet-covid-19-urbanization-migration-population/ (2021).

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marc Goldstein.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Punjani, N., Goldstein, M. Vasectomy: is the apparent decline real or not?. Nat Rev Urol 19, 69–70 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41585-021-00538-1

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Version of record:

  • Issue date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41585-021-00538-1

This article is cited by

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing