History

The first vasectomies were performed in the 1800s, with the first vasectomy in the United States in 1897. Traditionally, the vas tubes were accessed by cutting into the scrotum with a scalpel. During the 1970s in China, Dr. Shunqiang Li developed a more gentle technique using a very fine tool to access the tubes through a tiny puncture. This no-scalpel technique has been shown to have fewer complications and most patients find the method to be surprisingly gentle. Dr. Stein and Dr. Curington use the no-scalpel technique and have taught many other physicians this method of minimally invasive vasectomy.