Undescended testicle?
t. & p. & t.
obiwan wrote:
>
> My friend took her 12 month old to the doctor today and he has one
> undescended testicle. The pediatrician said that they have to do
> surgery ASAP to correct the condition and referred them to a specialist.
> I thought it was better to wait a couple years to see if it descended
> itself. (?) Anyway I guess they are going to do an ultrasound to see
> if it is really not descended yet or what. If anyone has any info on
> this, could you please email me and I will pass it along to my friend.
>
> Lisa
> and Hollis, 12/14/95
>=====
Hi, Lisa...my son Torin (14-m-o) has an undescended testicle. I was
SO hopeful it would come down by itself...but much of what I've
read (there are several netsites with info if you do an Alta Vista-type
search) suggests there's almost zip chance one will descend by
itself AFTER one year of age. However, I have come across conflicting
info on treatment. The prevailing view seems to be that surgery is
indicated by age *two* (sigh)...but at least one source I encountered
raised that age to about *four*...also, some cases apparently might
get hormonal treatment first (with HCG shots, which sounds bizarre)
to see if THAT jump-starts the darn thing -- if the testicle is close
enough to the scrotum, or something. I am very hopeful, somehow,
of avoiding surgery for Torin...but I also know something will have
to be done because otherwise, apparently, two big risks: infertility,
and much higher cancer rate in the "up" testicle. We are supposed to
hear more from the pediatrician at our forthcoming 15-month checkup,
at which time we likely will be referred to a urologist at Children's
Hospital...
t.r., nursing mom to toddling Torin, 2/13/96
wal...@dnvn.com
> My friend took her 12 month old to the doctor today and he has one
> undescended testicle. The pediatrician said that they have to do
> surgery ASAP to correct the condition and referred them to a specialist.
> I thought it was better to wait a couple years to see if it descended
> itself. (?) Anyway I guess they are going to do an ultrasound to see
> if it is really not descended yet or what. If anyone has any info on
> this, could you please email me and I will pass it along to my friend.
>
> Lisa
> and Hollis, 12/14/95
If an undescended testicle is not corrected before age two it will be
useless and the risks of sterility go way up. [it only takes one, of
course, but plenty of people with two are infertile -- so having two
makes future sterility less likely] Undescended testicles are also
at great risk for later development of cancer.
It is unlikely to descend later on its own -- so if they want to protect
his future ability to be a father they need to act fast.
Or so I have read. They seem to have good medical advice.
k
Alec Baughan
Hi Lisa,
Our son Hallam is 2.5 and both testicles are not yet descended. He has
been going to the hospital every 6 mths to have them looked at, and he's
due to go again this June/July. If at that time they have still not
descended then they will book him in for an operation.
He will be 3 mid December.
Hoping all goes well, for both Hallam and your friend. . .
Alec, Mandy, Susannah(4.5), Hallam(2.5) & ???(due 1Sep.)
obiwan <obi...@netcom.com> wrote in article
<obiwanE9...@netcom.com>...
> My friend took her 12 month old to the doctor today and he has one
> undescended testicle. The pediatrician said that they have to do
> surgery ASAP to correct the condition and referred them to a specialist.
> I thought it was better to wait a couple years to see if it descended
> itself. (?) Anyway I guess they are going to do an ultrasound to see
> if it is really not descended yet or what. If anyone has any info on
> this, could you please email me and I will pass it along to my friend.
>
> Lisa
> and Hollis, 12/14/95
> --
> * obi...@netcom.com * THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE * 1313 Harbor Blvd *
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>
Kiminy
Our son (now 2 1/2yo) was born with an undescended testicle. At that
time, the pediatrician told us that it would probably come down by
itself, but that if it didn't, Michael would probably have to have
surgery when he was two to bring it down.
As it turned out, Michael had to have surgery to correct an inguinal
hernia (in the groin area) when he was two months old. Since the
hernia was on the same side as the undescended testicle, both the
pediatrician and the surgeon felt that it would be wise to bring down
the testicle at the same time, since they were doing the surgery
anyway. However, the cord that is attached to the testicle was not
long enough for the doctor to actually attach the testicle inside the
scrotum, so he left it just outside the scrotum, and the doctors
decided to let nature take its course from there.
Since then, we have moved to a new town, and we have a new
pediatrician -- a woman this time. She has not been terribly
concerned about the undescended testicle, since she can feel it inside
the groin, but she is concerned about other areas of Michael's
development. Last February, we were referred to an endocrinologist (a
specialist in hormones and glands) because Michael was not growing
very well. The endocrinologist -- also a woman -- noticed that the
'undescended' testicle has atrophied to some extent, meaning that it
is probably not ever going to drop completely. However, she was not
concerned by this to any great extent. She assured us that one
testicle is sufficient to produce the necessary amounts of
testosterone for a normal healthy male, as well as to father children
later. We do need to make sure that Michael does not participate in
sports that normally have lots of hard contact, like American football
or rugby, so he doesn't risk losing the one testicle he does have, but
she didn't indicate that there were any other concerns that we needed
to have about the situation.
When we had a follow-up visit with the pediatrician, we pointed out
the problems with the testicle, and she pretty much agreed with the
endocrinologist. She also pointed out that many undescended testicles
are faulty in some way in the first place, which could account for why
they don't descend properly in the first place. In Michael's case,
the testicle was apparently caught up in some tissue in the abdomen,
and the surgeon had to untangle it before he could bring it down.
Having one undescended testicle is a different condition from having
two undescended testicles, too, and it's hard to compare the two
situations. If one testicle descends normally, that's a good sign
that the necessary hormones are being produced by the child's body,
and hormone treatment is generally unnecessary. When neither testicle
descends normally, then it could be a sign of hormone insufficiency,
and it's worth looking into hormone therapy.
I also find it interesting that the male doctors we have seen have
been much more concerned about Michael than the female doctors we have
seen. I don't know how much gender has to do with this, but we are
moving again in June, and we do plan to discuss this with future
doctors.
Kimberly Weiss
Mommy to Kate (6/16/91) and Michael (10/7/94)
aka Kiminy on IRC
epwo...@hsonline.net
Jenny
On 3 May 1997 01:16:02 GMT, wal...@dnvn.com wrote:
>
>If an undescended testicle is not corrected before age two it will be
>useless and the risks of sterility go way up. [it only takes one, of
>course, but plenty of people with two are infertile -- so having two
>makes future sterility less likely] Undescended testicles are also
>at great risk for later development of cancer.
>
>It is unlikely to descend later on its own -- so if they want to protect
>his future ability to be a father they need to act fast.
>
>Or so I have read. They seem to have good medical advice.
>
My son had an undescended testicle and I was given this same advice.
He was operated on when he was 18mths old. We took him in in the
morning and he was home for lunch! Happy as usual. Our ped likes to
do day surgery when possible for children, as it is less truamatic for
them than a stay in hospital. My son was of course tender for a while
where the incisions were, but he is now 5 years old and you can barely
see where he was operated on (two incisions, one in the scrotum and
another near the 'bikini' line)
Your friend is justafiabily concerned about her son, and no surgery
should be taken lightly, but from my experience, and given the medical
risks it is well worth it. Hope all goes well. :)
Cheers
Jenny
wal...@dnvn.com
In article <337D28...@CI.unil.ch>, Nathali...@CI.unil.ch wrote:
> obiwan wrote:
> >
> > My friend took her 12 month old to the doctor today and he has one
> > undescended testicle. The pediatrician said that they have to do
> > surgery ASAP to correct the condition and referred them to a specialist.
> > I thought it was better to wait a couple years to see if it descended
> > itself. (?) Anyway I guess they are going to do an ultrasound to see
> > if it is really not descended yet or what. If anyone has any info on
> > this, could you please email me and I will pass it along to my friend.
>
> An undescended testicle that is not corrected before the age of 10 is a
> risk factor for testicular cancer (I've read a lot about that subject
> lately, my boyfriend having recently had testicular cancer, though he
> did not have an undescended testicle).
> Take care
> Nathalie
>
> Nathalie Chiva
> Informatique administrative UNIL
> Switzerland
>
> Nathali...@CI.unil.ch
If it is not corrected very early -- certainly before age two -- it will
also not be functional as well as being a cancer threat. They do not
come down by themselves at this point. 12 months may already be too late
to save his fertility in that testicle -- certainly waiting any longer
is a mistake. While many men with one testicle are fathers -- it still
reduces his future chance to be a father if the testicle is not saved.
k