Hydrocele surgery

Surgical removal of a swelling around the testicles

A hydrocele is a swelling that occurs when fluid collects around one or both testicles. It is usually painless but can cause some discomfort and/or pain. Surgery is the best way to make sure it doesn’t return.

Why us

  • Fast access to treatment when you need it
  • Internationally and nationally renowned consultants
  • Clear, inclusive pricing
Typical hospital stay

Same day discharge

Type of anaesthetic

General

Covered by health insurance?

Yes

Procedure duration

20 minutes

Available to self-pay?

Yes

Why you might need hydrocele surgery

While a hydrocele is not usually painful, it may be uncomfortable because it makes your scrotum bigger and more sensitive. Usually the cause is unknown, but it can be the result of an injury, infection or, rarely, testicular cancer.

Sometimes, the fluid can be removed with a needle and syringe, but surgery is the best way to make sure the hydrocele doesn’t come back.

Find a consultant at Sussex Premier Health

Mr Shwan Ahmed

Consultant Urologist

Mr Edward Calleja

Consultant Urologist

Mr Steve Garnett

Consultant Urologist

Mr Roger Plail

Consultant Urologist

Mr Peter Rimington

Consultant Urological Surgeon, Specialist Laparoscopic Oncologic Surgeon

Mr Graham Watson

Consultant Urological Surgeon

Your initial consultation

You’ll meet your consultant in one of our private consultation rooms. During this time you will be able to explain your medical history symptoms and raise any concerns that you might have.

We will also discuss with you whether any further diagnostic tests such as scans or blood tests are needed. Any additional costs will be discussed before further tests are carried out.

The procedure

On the day of your operation, our ward staff will show you to your own private room. Your private room will have an en-suite bathroom and TV and Wi-Fi facilities.

Hydrocele surgery is usually done under general anaesthesia, which means you’ll be asleep throughout the operation and won’t feel any pain. It typically lasts around 20 minutes.

During the procedure, your surgeon will make a small incision in your scrotum and drain the fluid from around your testicle. The resulting space will be sewn together using dissolvable stitches.

Aftercare

The operation is usually carried out as a day-case, so you won’t need to stay overnight in hospital.

After the procedure, you will be taken to your room where you can rest and recuperate until we feel you’re ready to go home.

Once you’re ready to be discharged from hospital, you’ll need to arrange for a friend or family member to take you home as you won’t be able to drive.

For guidance on pain relief and your recovery, please see our patient information sections below.

If you need them, continue taking painkillers as advised by the hospital. We will provide you with a supply of all the medicines your consultant feels you need to take home with you after you’ve left hospital, up to 14 days. This may be at an additional cost to some patients.

Wearing close-fitting underwear day and night for a week or two will help to support your scrotum, ease discomfort and prevent swelling.

After a week the wound should be almost pain–free. You can go back to work and resume sexual activity when you feel comfortable, or when your surgeon advises. Dis-solvable stitches will disappear on their own after about a week and your wound should heal fairly quickly. However, if you have any concerns, do not hesitate to contact the hospital.

If you have any questions or concerns about your recovery you can call and speak to a member of the nursing team at any time, please call 01424 757459.

After hydrocele surgery, we will provide you with all the appropriate medication, advice on what to do and not to do, and follow-up support.

Your nurse will give you a telephone number for the hospital, in case you need to ask for any further advice. If you have any non-dissolvable stitches, you will be given an appointment for the out-patient clinic to have them removed.

Specific complications of this operation are uncommon, but as with any surgery to the scrotum, you may have some temporary difficulty passing urine. A catheter (a tube) may be needed for the first day or so, to drain urine from your bladder into a bag or bottle. There is also a rare chance that the operation causes the spermatic cord to be squeezed too tightly, partially cutting off the blood supply. This could eventually lead to the testicle shrinking.

Call us straight away if you experience any of these symptoms:

  • difficulty passing urine
  • severe swelling or redness of the scrotum
  • increasing bleeding from the wound
  • a yellow or white discharge from the wound
  • a high temperature or fever
  • pain that can’t be controlled by painkillers

If you have any questions or concerns about your recovery you can call and speak to a member of the nursing team at any time, please call 01424 757459.

Your consultant will talk to you about the possible risks and complications of having this procedure and how they apply to you.

 

Interested in finding out more?

Speak to a member of our team

Phone01424 757400

Enquiry form

DD slash MM slash YYYY

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