March Madness Signals More Vasectomies - East Idaho News
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March Madness Signals More Vasectomies

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GETTY 32113 PizzaTV?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1363876525608Hemera/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — March Madness is here, and a Cape Cod, Mass., clinic is giving guys the perfect excuse to veg out on the couch: A vasectomy.  They’ll even throw in a free pizza.

“We want the patient to rest for two or three days after the procedure,” said Evan Cohen, practice coordinator for Urology Associates of Cape Cod.  “This way they can put their feet up, watch a game and have a pizza.”

It’s the second time the coastal clinic has offered clients a large one-topping pizza with a lifetime of birth control, a deal credited to a 22 percent bump in business last March, Cohen said.

Men leave the 20-minute procedure, which severs the tubes that carry sperm from the testicles, with instructions for their recovery and a coupon for Surf’s Up Pizza & Seafood in Sandwich, Mass.

After a vasectomy, a man is instructed to support his scrotum with a bandage or tight fitting underwear, ice the area, and avoid heavy lifting as well as sex, according to the Mayo Clinic.  There is no official recommendation on pizza.

The promotion is fitting, though, given that March is already the biggest month for vasectomies.

“We’re not sure why,” said Cohen, who told ABC News last March that some men “want to get this kind of elective procedure done and out of the way before the [summer] season gets into full swing.”

But it’s not just about getting guys in the clinic, Cohen said of the promotion.  It’s about starting a conversation among couples.

“We’re trying to make it light so it’s easier to talk about,” he said, adding that the simple surgery is one of the most effective and least expensive forms of birth control.  “Being on the pill, having your tubes tied, those carry costs and the risk of complications.”

Cohen said about 30 men have signed up for the March Madness deal, which expires with the NCAA basketball finals on April 6.

“It hasn’t been as busy this year,” he said, adding that changes in insurance policies might be discouraging the elective procedure for some men.  “Or maybe they’re just waiting for the right game.”

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