Hydrocele surgery at Spire Manchester Hospital

Surgical removal of a swelling around the testicles.

A hydrocele is a swelling that occurs when fluid collects around one or both testicles. It is usually painless but can cause some discomfort and/or pain. Surgery is the best way to make sure it doesn't return.

Why you might need it

While a hydrocele is not usually painful, it may be uncomfortable because it makes your scrotum bigger and more sensitive. Usually the cause is unknown, but it can be the result of an injury, infection or, rarely, testicular cancer.

Sometimes, the fluid can be removed with a needle and syringe, but surgery is the best way to make sure the hydrocele doesn’t come back.


How much does Hydrocele surgery cost at Spire Manchester Hospital




Who will do it?




Before your treatment



Preparing for your treatment





The procedure


Hydrocele surgery is usually done under general anaesthesia, which means you'll be asleep throughout the operation and won't feel any pain. It typically lasts around 20 minutes.

During the procedure, your surgeon will make a small incision in your scrotum and drain the fluid from around your testicle. The resulting space will be sewn together using dissolvable stitches.


The operation is usually carried out as a day-case, so you won't need to stay overnight in hospital.



Pain relief


Wearing close-fitting underwear day and night for a week or two will help to support your scrotum, ease discomfort and prevent swelling.

After a week the wound should be almost pain–free. You can go back to work and resume sexual activity when you feel comfortable, or when your surgeon advises. Dis-solvable stitches will disappear on their own after about a week and your wound should heal fairly quickly. However, if you have any concerns, do not hesitate to contact the hospital.

How your loved ones can help


Follow your surgeon’s advice about driving. You should not drive until you can make an emergency stop without discomfort.

Looking after you

Even after you’ve left hospital, we’re still looking after you every step of the way. After hydrocele surgery, we will provide you with all the appropriate medication, advice on what to do and not to do, and follow-up support.

Your nurse will give you a telephone number for the hospital, in case you need to ask for any further advice. If you have any non-dissolvable stitches, you will be given an appointment for the out-patient clinic to have them removed.

Specific complications of this operation are uncommon, but as with any surgery to the scrotum, you may have some temporary difficulty passing urine. A catheter (a tube) may be needed for the first day or so, to drain urine from your bladder into a bag or bottle. There is also a rare chance that the operation causes the spermatic cord to be squeezed too tightly, partially cutting off the blood supply. This could eventually lead to the testicle shrinking.

Call us straight away if you experience any of these symptoms:

  • difficulty passing urine
  • severe swelling or redness of the scrotum
  • increasing bleeding from the wound
  • a yellow or white discharge from the wound
  • a high temperature or fever
  • pain that can’t be controlled by painkillers



Why choose Spire?


Important to note


How to get to us

The hospital is situated approximately 20 minutes from both Piccadilly and Victoria railway stations in Manchester city centre, and only 10 minutes from Manchester International Airport.

For sat nav please use postcode M20 2ZA.

Find us on Google maps

Spire Manchester Hospital,

170 Barlow Moor Road
M20 2AF

Main Switchboard:  0161 447 6677

Self-pay treatment enquiries:  0161 447 6700

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