Undescended testes
About 4% of boys are born with an undescended
testes. However by the age of 1 year only 0.8% still has this
problem.
Complications
Undescended testes do not form sperms satisfactorily unless they
are in the scrotum. There is also some increase in malignant
potential later in life.
Surgery
The recommended age for surgery is 18 months. The surgery takes
30-45 minutes and children usually return home the same day.
What are retractile testes?
A lot of young boys have a retractile testis, where the testis
sometimes gets pulled up because of muscular contraction. It is
vital not to label these as undescended testes or to subject them
to unnecessary surgery.
Submitted by
Mr D Misra, Consultant Paediatric General Surgeon &
Urologist
((see editorial published by Mr Misra et al,
Urology 1997, 49: 662-5.)