Undescended testicle

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Male reproductive anatomy

Male reproductive system

Cryptorchidism; Empty scrotum - undescended testes; Scrotum - empty (undescended testes); Monorchism; Vanished testes - undescended

Usually the testicle will descend into the scrotum without any intervention during the first year of life. If this does not occur, hormonal injections (B-HCG or testosterone) may be given in an attempt to stimulate movement of the testicle into the scrotum.

Surgery (orchiopexy) is the definitive therapy. The trend in literature favors earlier surgery to prevent irreversible damage to the testis, which may cause infertility.

The majority of cases resolve spontaneously, without any treatment. Medical or surgical correction of the condition is usually successful.

About 5% of patients with undescended testicles do not have testicles that can be found at the time of surgery. This is called a vanished or absent testis.

If one or both testicles do not descend, a man may be infertile later in life. Men who have an undescended testicle at birth are at higher risk of developing testicular cancer in both testes.

Call your child's health care provider if he appears to have an undescended testicle.

Call your provider if you are a male, 15 years or older and you are unsure how to perform testicular self-examination (TSE) to screen for testicular cancer.

Review Date: 06/14/2006
Reviewed By: Neil D. Sherman, MD, Urologist, Essex County, NJ. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.