ROUND LAKE – Vasectomy. Just hearing the word will make most men wince uncomfortably. Going through the actual procedure can be even more uncomfortable, especially the first couple of days after it's been performed.
Ron Zittler, 42 of Round Lake, has come up with an invention that makes recovery time a little less painful.
The idea
Ron underwent a vasectomy three years ago. He and wife Jennifer have been married for 13 years, and have two beautiful, bright children, 5-year-old daughter Sara, and nearly 8-year-old son Gage. They were done making babies, so Ron went to a urologist and had the in-office procedure.
Jennifer said that the plan was for Ron to have his vasectomy a year after Sara was born, but, like a lot of men, Ron tried to put it off.
"I finally printed out a list of urologists [from their health plan] and told him, 'pick one,'" Jennifer said with a laugh.
Following a vasectomy, doctors usually recommend wearing a jock strap, or tight underwear, and placing a bag of frozen peas on the testicles to keep them from swelling. Ron went that route, but when he'd roll over in bed, the bag would fall off.
"I was trapped in bed for two days, feeling uncomfortable, and I told my urologist there has to be a better way," Ron said.
After a lot of trial and error, Ron developed a pair of underpants that would make recovery a little easier, without the aid of frozen vegetables.
Ron created VasoWear – a conjunction of "vasectomy" and "underwear." They look like the Calvin Klein boxer briefs that Mark Whalberg made so popular in the late 1980s, but they have a couple of additional accessories.
He was also inspired by the book "Secrets from an Inventor's Notebook," by Maurice Kanbar, the man who created Skyy Vodka. In the book, Maurice Kanbar encouraged inventors to find an item that would appeal to a niche market, preferably a new item.
The design
Inside the underpants, Ron installed a shelf pocket of sorts, similar to the shelf bras that are built into women's swimsuits. The testicles rest on this shelf to prevent them from hanging, because like Ron said, "after a vasectomy, gravity is your enemy." On the outside of the underpants, is an additional pocket where a sheet of plastic-wrapped ice cubes can slide in, keeping everything cool, and a little less uncomfortable.
Ron said it took him almost three years to get the design of the actual underpants just the way he wanted them. In the beginning, his wife Jennifer and her mother sewed them.
"I wore a lot of crazy underwear," Ron said of some of his early prototypes. "I was afraid I was going to get in a car accident and someone was going to see them."
With the help of his urologist, Ron was able to test VasoWear on vasectomy patients for two years, and had a lot of success.
Six months ago, Ron sold his optical business in Genoa City, so he could concentrate on his VasoWear full time, and started sending pairs to national magazines, like Men's Health and Maxim, and local media outlets. This is how he got the attention of Chicago DJ Jonathon Brandmeier, who called him up on Jan. 8.
A call from Johny B.
"He [Jonathon Brandmeier, a DJ from "The Loop"] got the package on a Friday and he called me on Monday," Ron said.
Ron said Brandmeier received the package of VasoWear, and called him without notice. At first, Ron didn't know who he was. Brandmeier described Ron's product to his listeners, who had to call in with their guesses.
"We had fun, and gave some away," he said.
"Brandmeier said he would never get a vasectomy because his doctor would have to perform it with his eyes closed – since he's a celebrity," Ron said with a laugh.
The future
Ron said roughly 500,000 men have vasectomies each year, and if he could get 1 percent of men to buy his product, he'd be doing pretty well.
He said he's put roughly $10,000 into creating his invention.
"I think it's clever," said wife Jennifer. " I hope they sell well too, but I guess I haven't thought about it."
The underpants, which are manufactured in Genoa City, cost $29.95 and come in all the usual sizes; they are black and made of lycra. Each pair comes with two ice pack sheets.
Even though most vasectomy patients would only wear the underpants for two to three days, Ron is looking for other applications for his invention. Like his product motto reads, "We have your support," so he thinks they could be beneficial to men who participate in sports.
Because women are usually so instrumental in a man's decision to get a vasectomy, Ron said he would be marketing to women as well.
Like a lot of inventor-types, Ron has other ideas in his head. He'd like to see VasoWear sell well enough that his wife can quit her job, if she wanted, and allow him to create more inventions.
For more information on VasoWear, check out Ron's Web site at www.vasowear.com, or ask your urologist about them.
What's a vasectomy?
According to Webster's New World College Dictionary, a vasectomy is defined as "the surgical removal or tying of the vas deferens to prevent the passing of sperm: used as a form of birth control."
