MP37-20 POST VASECTOMY SEMEN ANALYSIS: DOES PATIENT CONVENIENCE IMPROVE COMPLIANCE?

Abstract

You have accessJournal of UrologyGeneral & Epidemiological Trends & Socioeconomics: Practice Patterns, Quality of Life and Shared Decision Making IV1 Apr 2016MP37-20 POST VASECTOMY SEMEN ANALYSIS: DOES PATIENT CONVENIENCE IMPROVE COMPLIANCE? Eugene Kramolowsky, Joseph Ellen, Brigette Booth, Blake Moore, and Nada Wood Eugene KramolowskyEugene Kramolowsky More articles by this author , Joseph EllenJoseph Ellen More articles by this author , Brigette BoothBrigette Booth More articles by this author , Blake MooreBlake Moore More articles by this author , and Nada WoodNada Wood More articles by this author View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.juro.2016.02.1697AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES Vasectomy is a very common method of achieving permanent sterilization. Post vasectomy semen analysis (PVSA) is required to confirm post-operative sterility. Patient compliance in obtaining a PSVA has long been an issue following the procedure. This study compares two methods of collecting the PVSA to determine if providing a more convenient method would increase PVSA compliance. METHODS Over a 5 year period (2010 -2015), 5,191 vasectomies were performed at two outpatient surgery centers by private practice board certified urologists. All patients were given instruction on PVSA collection at the initial consultation visit and again in the postoperative instructions. The patients were instructed to perform PVSA at 12 and 14 weeks following the procedure. The men were retrospectively divided into two groups based on the protocol for obtaining the PVSA. Group 1 consisted of 2,767 men who were instructed to either return to the office to produce the specimen or deliver it promptly to the office for the PVSA. Group 2 was comprised of 2,424 men who were enrolled with an outside vendor that provided a home test system with a similar timetable to collect specimens. For a fee (~$50), the vendor provided a testing kit to the patient, which could be mailed from home, and then contact the company to obtain the PVSA results. Patients in this second group who did not submit a specimen were contacted by phone. Patient compliance was determined by tracking the number of men providing PVSA in each group. Chi square test was used to statistically compare the two groups. RESULTS In Group 1, 43.3% (1,198) of the men followed the entire protocol and returned both of the required PVSA specimens, while 60.5% (1,674) of the men returned one or more PSVA specimens. In group 2, 28% (681) men provided both PVSA specimens and 45.2 % (1,095) of the patients provided one or more PVSA specimen. Participants in group 2 were contacted an average of 4 times (range 2 to 6 times) before being designated noncompliant. There was a significant difference identified in the number of men who chose to do PVSA between the two groups (p<0.01). There was no difference identified in PVSA compliance comparing the two surgery center locations. CONCLUSIONS In this cohort of vasectomy patients the ability to collect and test a PVSA specimen at home did not increase the post vasectomy compliance rate. Patient compliance with PSVA testing was significantly better in the group who were asked to return the specimen to the urologist office. Ease of collecting specimens does not appear to influence the historically poor compliance rate identified in post vasectomy patients. © 2016FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 195Issue 4SApril 2016Page: e504 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2016MetricsAuthor Information Eugene Kramolowsky More articles by this author Joseph Ellen More articles by this author Brigette Booth More articles by this author Blake Moore More articles by this author Nada Wood More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement Advertisement PDF downloadLoading ...