Hydocelectomy post-op swelling, detailed timeline

Posted , 4 users are following.

Hi all,

I had a hydocelectomy about 4 days ago, and everything is very, very swollen and my scrotum is about the size of a large grapefruit. I've been icing, taking ibu, and wearing the jockstrap / compression underwear but its still quite painful and not showing any signs of going down.

My question is, to the extent you can remember, can anyone provide a timeline of their experience? As in, first how large was the swelling? After one-, two-, four weeks what was it like? After three months? And then 12 months?

The reason I'm concerned is that I've had two hernia surgeries, and both times something didn't seem right post-op and then actually turned out to be an issue -- e.g. a hydocele which the doc at the time said was not a hydrocele but rather just post-op swelling which would go away. I am very afraid that I'm going to be dragging a grapefruit around for months while the doc keeps saying "just hang in there, it'll be fine"... until it isn't.

Thanks a bunch guys.

0 likes, 5 replies

5 Replies

  • Posted

    It was rough for a good 2 weeks for me the testicle was about the size of a tennis ball for the that time period. Around the 6 week mark it was pretty much healed but still kind of big. The doc told me I'd swelling doesnt go down by the 3rd month thats pretty much what you are going to be stuck with. I'm a few years out of my last surgery and it's still the size of an egg so I guess that's how big it will remain.

  • Posted

    My surgery was 11/2016. My scrotum was swollen (about avocado size), extremely painful, and completely black and blue. I was determined not to take the pain killers I was prescribed, but broke down and had to take them a couple of times (the pain was so great, I couldn't stand up.) This went on for about a week. The swelling went down gradually (maybe over 4-6 weeks after), the pain subsided, and was eventually down to about it's original size. During the initial recovery period, I questioned why I did it and what the hell I did to myself, but I was really pleased with the end result. No one would ever know what I had done, unless they were studying my groin area. My original hydrocele was about the size of a grapefruit. Good Luck with your recovery.

  • Posted

    getting hydro surgery on May 14.. nervous as this thing is huge
    • Posted

      Mine wasn't *that* big, relative to some of those reported on this site. My was about the size of an avocado -- not painful but definitely uncomfortable. I'd say if its inhibiting your sex life or daily activity, its probs worth it.

  • Posted

    Hey fellas,

    Thanks for your replies. So now I'm 8 days out and the swelling has gone down a bit but that first week was rough. I saw the surgeon again yesterday and he said that it was indeed larger than normal (its still about the same of a grapefruit), but that it will start going down.

    The peripheral swelling has improved a lot. The overall pain decreased a lot today from yesterday.

    I'll update next week.

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