South Florida Vascular Associates performs gonadal vein embolization for women with pelvic congestion syndrome (varicose veins in the pelvic area) and men with varicoceles (varicose veins in the scrotum). This minimally invasive treatment is a catheter-based technique used to treat abnormal vessels or veins.
During the procedure, which is performed under local anesthesia or mild sedation, your interventional radiologist will thread a catheter from the femoral vein or the jugular vein in the neck into the faulty varicose veins.
Through the catheter, the doctor will insert one or more coils, along with a sclerosing agent, that clots the blood and seals off the faulty vein(s). The sclerosing agent also travels into the tiny secondary branches of the blood vessels to close them off (these vessels typically cause recurrences with surgical ligation).
When the patient stands up, the vein is closed and blood no longer fills the varicose veins in the scrotum or pelvic area. The veins and pain from the varicosities goes away. For many men, their sperm count and motility also improve.
