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Pregnancy after Vasectomy

Is there a possibility of getting pregnant by a man who has a vasectomy 18 years ago ?
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Avatar universal
It’s not likely and very very rare after so many years for it to fail . Are you worried a vasectomy may have failed ?
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Yes . My due was January 26th I had two sexual partners. One may 5th & one may 7th . I found out I was pregnant at 8 weeks
134578 tn?1693250592
COMMUNITY LEADER
There is such a possibility, *if* his sperm count is not zero. That could happen if the original vasectomy didn't work, (or I guess if he was fibbing about having had a vasectomy at all), or if the vasectomy failed years later.

After a vasectomy, guys usually get their sperm count retested at the 3- or 6-month point so they can be sure the vasectomy worked. Did the guy do this? If the guy never was tested after the vasectomy, it's possible that he doesn't know if his vasectomy was effective or not.

Another possibility would be if someone had a vasectomy and then later his tubes (or one tube) managed to reconnect. It seems like it would be rare to have happen, but the medical literature says it can.

Simplest thing to do is to ask the guy to go to his doc or urologist and get tested to see what his sperm count is at this time. If it is zero, then you have your answer.
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15 Comments
I’m not sure if he was tested after . I found out I was pregnant June 3 & Had my first U/S June 19th I was 8 weeks & 3 days . I had two sexual partners around that time May5th was an ex & May 7th was the guy with the vasectomy
Did you sleep with anyone around May 12?
Also, did the baby come on the due date?
Oh, never mind about the question regarding May 12, I made a miscount on my calendar. So you're looking at May 5 as the possible ovulation date, and you're worrying that Mr. Vasectomy on May 7 might have managed to get in there? Again, the thing to do is ask Mr. V. to please go get his sperm count checked. I believe this is cheaper than a DNA test, and it covers all the bases (if he never got tested in the first place, if he was lying, and if the tubes reconnected). He would probably be willing to if the alternative were that he might have to go to court to prove he's not the dad. It's just that much simpler all around.
I was induced @ 39 weeks . January 21st
Are you asking about Mr. V. as a random thought, or are you really concerned? Does Mr. May 5 know about Mr. V, and if not, do you think he might find out if you asked Mr. V to have a test of his sperm count? Because it sure would be the easiest way to get things checked.
Concerned about Mrs.V being a possibility . I had home DNA test done on Mr. May 5 it came back negative for him being the father . Are home DNA 100% accurate ?
I had sex with someone April 19th but I took a pregnancy test May 6th and it came back negative so there’s no way he could be the father
So, you had sex with Mr. April 19, had a negative pregnancy test, then had no more sex at all with anyone until sex with Mr. May 5 (the date suggested by your eighth-week ultrasound to be the date of conception), and then had sex with Mr.V. on May 7, and then no more sex with anyone until you found out you were pregnant? Was there a period in there? You're right that Mr. April 19 is too early, but sperm can live 4-6 days in your body. Was there any other activity within a week or ten days of May 5? (For example, May 1-4? May 8?)

If you asked me to back an ultrasound against a home DNA test, I might back a very early ultrasound against a home test, but it would have to be sixth week and not eighth week, and it couldn't be trying to split the difference between two guys only two days apart. Early ultrasounds are useful but not perfect; on the other hand, home DNA tests are only as good as the perfection with which they were done. People mishandle the swabs, guys get a buddy to do the swab for them and secretly swap it out before mailing, home test labs handle huge numbers of tests and by sheer numbers alone, possibly a mistake might happen in one in x thousand tests. I even heard of a girl (she wrote me the story herself) who swapped out the baby's swab and the dad's with her own swab (as the baby) and her father's swab (as the dad) in order to fool the guy. This is why home tests aren't accepted legal proof of paternity -- the science is not flawed, but the management of the test can't be guaranteed. Even if you did the swabs as each other watched, put them in the envelope before each other's eyes and kept the envelope in full view as you drove to the post office together and walked it in and mailed it together, there is still some room for doubt.

So, back to the question of any other sex in the week around May 5, and if not, to the question of whether Mr. V was fibbing or just wrong about his vasectomy. If you asked him, would he get his sperm count checked? If not, you might need to get legal counsel and haul both guys into the courts to get them both tested.

I had a period April 21 no sex before May 5 th .
And after May 7, no sex until you learned you were pregnant?
May 18th & 28th . I found out June 3rd I was pregnant
OK, May 28 would obviously be out, and almost certainly May 18 also (not because of the June 3 positive on the test, but because that's so far from when your eighth-week ultrasound indicated you got pregnant). Was May 18 with one of the two guys? If so, you're back to the original question anyway.

Neither the home paternity test nor the vasectomy are foolproof, for the reasons gone into already. Is this a situation in which the guy(s) are resisting finding out who the dad is? Or do they want to know?
May 5th wants to know for certain & Mr.V will not return my call or messages
Is Mr. V. a shady person? If so, he might never have had a vasectomy, or even rush off to get a new vasectomy if he tested himself once he heard you were pregnant and realized his vasectomy had failed. Or is he a solid citizen that is going to be findable no matter what?

Especially if you think Mr. V. might cheat or just disappear, the straightforward thing to do is to hire a lawyer (or go to a legal aid clinic) and have a summons served and get both men to do DNA tests considered legitimate by the courts. Mr. May 5 should be glad of this being done in an official manner, since he would never have to worry that sometime in the future this question would be revisited because the test was flaky.  And it does sound like only a legal summons will keep Mr. V. from dodging you. A judge would prefer the paternity case to name all possible dads and for the tests to be done by all possible candidates, rather than piecemealing it out.

It would be more fragmented but would spread out the costs a bit if you get an official DNA test with Mr. May 5, and only go after  Mr. V. if that test comes back negative. You can call the family courts in your area of jurisdiction and ask the judge's clerk for a list of labs whose paternity tests are approved for purposes of legally determining paternity, and go together (you, Mr. May 5, and the baby) and do the test in an official manner and handled by neutral lab experts. I would call a lawyer if this is the way you intend to handle the first step, to be sure there is nothing you are missing. You don't want to have to do things over and over again, you want the DNA test with Mr. May 5 to be correct and legally done.

I'm sorry you're in this spot, and with the pandemic you'll have to work around people in the court system having limited hours. But it is something you need to move on.

Avatar universal
The ultrasound suggests your ovulation was close to May 11th.  Sperm from either encounter might still have been viable, May 7th more likely. You have eliminated May 5th. It’s time to ask May 7th if he will consent to testing. Hope I have the details right. If he won’t consent,  you could get an Ancestry test done to see if you can tie in to a relative of his.
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3 Comments
My first Ultrasound was June 19th 2019 . My baby was Measured at 8 weeks & 3 days
Yes, that is the info I used, and also why Annie asked about May 12th. Two days separation is too close to call. You will have to do paternity testing with one or both of the suitors.
The only thing I would add to the answer above is that while Ancestry.com might be a way to find what you want to know,  Mr. V. can't just walk away from the question and dump it all in your lap to have to do detective work. The law is with you here. It takes a dim view of guys trying to get out of legal paternity obligations, meaning if Mr. V. gets a summons, he has to do a DNA test. (And, because vasectomies can fail, and new vasectomies can be had once a guy hears he might be called in a paternity action, a DNA test not a sperm-count test is what your lawyer will ask for.)  I assumed above that things are on a friendly footing and he would want to know as much as you do if there is any possibility he's the dad. But if you think he will resist, handle it all through a lawyer.
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