No-Needle Anesthesia (NNA) is accomplished by means of a jet injector that delivers a hypospray of Xylocaine under pressure instantly, painlessly and remarkably effectively. Less than 0.5 cc’s of the local anesthetic is required. That’s one tenth the volume used with standard needle anesthesia.

The injector works by a spring-loaded piston that delivers a high-pressure, mini-injection of micronized Xylocaine droplets directly through the skin, and diffusing, once it makes contact, down to the vas. All you feel is a gentle, split-second flick against the skin.

In addition to the obvious benefits of no pain and no needle, there is the additional advantage that, with so small a volume of anesthetic, there is no distention or ballooning of tissue. That means that the chance of needle-induced bleeding is eliminated and healing is accelerated.

The injector has been in use for years; in plastic surgery, gynecology, dentistry, podiatry, other surgical disciplines, as well as in public health, for immunizations. It was adapted for vasectomy by an American colleague who has used it on over a thousand patients. I’m pleased to be the first to offer it in Canada. I’ve been using it since July 2002.

“For a man there is no such thing as minor groin surgery.” (Dennis Miller, comedian)

Why the great fear of needle in scrotum, you ask?

Maybe it’s a Freudian thing; castration or what have you. Maybe it’s just an instinctual reluctance to tamper with perfection. (Just kidding!) Perhaps it’s an innate biological imperative; to protect from sharp objects, that which is most precious to the survival of the species.

Crazy as it sounds, though, it’s true. Whatever the reason, many men tell me that, of many fears, the fear of the needle is the one thing that keeps them procrastinating their vasectomy, often for years.

And remember: “He who hesitates is pregnant!”

For more information on No-Needle Anesthesia (NNA) for NSV please contact me:
604.539.1915 or email: drrich@no-scalpelvasectomy.com.


Barry Rich MD

Helping men become non-productive members of society since 1995.