"Tubal ligation involves cutting and tying a woman's fallopian tubes, which are well below muscles and other tissue in the abdomen. It requires a general anesthetic and a hospital visit.
A couple of statistics might make the differences even more clear:
Fatalities per 100,000: tubal ligation = 3.51; vasectomy = 0
Approximate cost: tubal ligation = $2,500; vasectomy = $750 - 850
Vasectomy is simpler, safer, cheaper and takes less time to recover from than tubal ligation. Their failure rates are just about the same: 1 in 2,000.
Still, most men naturally squirm at the thought of anyone tampering with that part of their bodies. If you hear horror stories about vasectomy, press for details. I assure you the tale will turn out to be at least third-hand and groundless. I've done more than 4,500 vasectomies and have never seen a serious complication. The most frequent comment is, "You mean it's over already?"
When a man has a vasectomy Friday afternoon and follows instructions—uses ice packs, elevates his feet and is inactive for the weekend (no matter how good he feels)—he's back to work on Monday barely feeling a thing.
It's worth discussing with your doctor what approach he uses and how many vasectomies he's done. Technique and experience can make a significant difference both in how quickly you're back on your feet and also in the likelihood of failure.
Is sex different after vasectomy? Not at all. Because the testicles supply less than 5 percent of the ejaculate, there's no noticeable difference in the semen. Erections and sex drive are unaffected—though freedom from worry of pregnancy often enhances a couple's sex life.
What about long-term health effects? No repeated studies have ever documented a hazard to men who have had vasectomies. And recently, researchers at Harvard University reported in the New England Journal of Medicine results from the largest study ever of vasectomized men. They were unable to associate vasectomy with any health problem in 14,607 vasectomized men."
http://www.malehealthcenter.com/c_vasectomy.html
