Epididymitis in patients with anorectal malformations: a cause for urologic concern.

INTRODUCTION: Epididymitis in patients with anorectal malformation (ARM) represents a unique problem because unlike the general population, an underlying urinary tract problem is frequently identified. We review our experience with epididymitis in ARM population with an emphasis on examining urologic outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of male patients with ARM cared for from 1980 to 2010. Clinical and pathologic variables recorded included age at presentation, recurrence, associated urologic anomalies, incidence of ureteral fusion with mesonephric ductal structures, glomerular filtration rate and urodynamic parameters. RESULTS: Twenty-six patients were identified with documented episodes of epididymitis. Renal injury was noted in five patients (19%), all of whom were diagnosed with neurogenic bladder (NGB) several years after anorectoplasty. NGB was found in ten patients (38%) in our series. Ectopic insertion of ureter into a mesonephric ductal structure was discovered in five patients (19%). Twelve patients (46%) had recurrent episodes of epididymitis, with seven of these patients (58%) being diagnosed with NGB. Two patients in the pubertal group presented with a history of epididymitis and complained of ejaculatory pain. CONCLUSION: Epididymitis in a patient with ARM warrants a comprehensive urologic investigation, particularly in recurrent episodes. Attempts at surgical intervention (e.g. vasectomy) should be avoided until functional assessment of the urinary tract has occurred. Failure to recognize this association may lead to potentially avoidable complications and morbidity. Long term urological follow up of these patients is warranted to identify at risk patients and minimize renal deterioration.

Epididymitis in Patients with Anorectal Malformations: A Cause for Urologic Concern

Introduction Epididymitis in patients with anorectal malformation (ARM) represents a unique problem because unlike the general population, an underlying urinary tract problem is frequently identified. We review our experience with epididymitis in ARM population with an emphasis on examining urologic outcomes. Materials and Methods We performed a retrospective review of male patients with ARM cared for from 1980 to 2010. Clinical and pathologic variables recorded included age at presentation, recurrence, associated urologic anomalies, incidence of ureteral fusion with mesonephric ductal structures, glomerular filtration rate and urodynamic parameters. Results Twenty-six patients were identified with documented episodes of epididymitis. Renal injury was noted in five patients (19%), all of whom were diagnosed with neurogenic bladder (NGB) several years after anorectoplasty. NGB was found in ten patients (38%) in our series. Ectopic insertion of ureter into a mesonephric ductal structure was discovered in five patients (19%). Twelve patients (46%) had recurrent episodes of epididymitis, with seven of these patients (58%) being diagnosed with NGB. Two patients in the pubertal group presented with a history of epididymitis and complained of ejaculatory pain. Conclusion Epididymitis in a patient with ARM warrants a comprehensive urologic investigation, particularly in recurrent episodes. Attempts at surgical intervention (e.g. vasectomy) should be avoided until functional assessment of the urinary tract has occurred. Failure to recognize this association may lead to potentially avoidable complications and morbidity. Long term urological follow up of these patients is warranted to identify at risk patients and minimize renal deterioration .

Chronic epididymitis with scrotal vasocutaneous urinary fistula.

Chronic Epididymitis is a relatively rare problem in boys and is often enigmatic in its etiology. It is often associated with urinary tract abnormalities in infants and prepubertal children. This report describes a rare and unusual case of a chronic epididymitis with acquired scrotal vasocutaneous urinary fistula in an 8-mo-old boy who was found to have a large prostatic utricular cyst and ectopic vas insertion. The authors discuss embryology, pathophysiology, diagnostic dilemma and different treatment options.

[Orchitis and male infertility]. / Orchitis und Infertilität.

Infections and inflammations of the genital tract are considered the most frequent causes of reduced male fertility, but conclusive epidemiological data are not available. In view of the exposure of germ cells to pathogenic components as well as the cells and mediators involved in the inflammatory processes, irreversible damage to spermatogenesis and corresponding decline of ejaculate quality are to be expected, particularly in cases of chronic orchitis. While the consequences of orchitis and epididymo-orchitis that exhibit clinical symptoms due to systemic or local infections are well known, including testicular atrophy and complete loss of fertility, those cases of inflammatory reactions of the testicles that manifest an asymptomatic or subclinical course, or are not even due to an infection, have received little attention until now. However, systematic histopathological analyses have shown a high prevalence of asymptomatic inflammatory reactions in testicular biopsies from infertile men. The mostly focal lymphocytic infiltrates correlate with the degree of damage to spermatogenesis and corresponding clinical and endocrinological parameters of testicular function. Noninvasive diagnostic techniques are not yet available so that chronic asymptomatic inflammations of the testicles as the primary cause or cofactor of male fertility disorders are underestimated. Except for administration of pathogen-specific antibiotics, treatment recommendations are to a large extent still lacking.

Impact of infection on the secretory capacity of the male accessory glands

INTRODUCTION: Studies that compare the impact of different infectious entities of the male reproductive tract (MRT) on the male accessory gland function are controversial. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Semen analyses of 71 patients with proven infections of the MRT were compared with the results of 40 healthy non-infected volunteers. Patients were divided into 3 groups according to their diagnosis: chronic prostatitis NIH type II (n = 38), chronic epididymitis (n = 12), and chronic urethritis (n = 21). RESULTS: The bacteriological analysis revealed 9 different types of microorganisms, considered to be the etiological agents, isolated in different secretions, including: urine, expressed prostatic secretions, semen and urethral smears: E. Coli (n = 20), Klebsiella (n = 2), Proteus spp. (n = 1), Enterococcus (n = 20), Staphylococcus spp. (n = 1), M. tuberculosis (n = 2), N. gonorrhea (n = 8), Chlamydia tr. (n = 16) and, Ureaplasma urealyticum (n = 1). The infection group had significantly (p < 0.05) lower: semen volume, alpha-glucosidase, fructose, and zinc in seminal plasma and, higher pH than the control group. None of these parameters was sufficiently accurate in the ROC analysis to discriminate between infected and non-infected men. CONCLUSION: Proven bacterial infections of the MRT impact negatively on all the accessory gland function parameters evaluated in semen, suggesting impairment of the secretory capacity of the epididymis, seminal vesicles and prostate. These findings were associated with an infectious related significant increase of semen pH. None of the semen parameters evaluated can be suggested as a diagnostic tool for infection.

Epididymoorchitis and pancytopenia caused by brucellosis.

A 15 year old boy presented with fever and acute painful scrotal swelling. Complete blood count showed pancytopenia. Serum brucella antibodies were positive. Pancytopenia and epididymoorchitis are rare complications of brucellosis and clinicians must consider this entity in the differential diagnosis of adolescents with epididiymoorchitis associated with pancytopenia.

Acute epididymitis in children: a 4-year retrospective study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the incidence of acute epididymitis (AE) compared to testicular torsion (TT) as a form of acute scrotum in children, to describe clinical aspects and to assess the value of laboratory tests and radiological investigations in AE. METHODS: Retrospective review of the medical records of 49 patients presenting with clinical aspects of AE over a 4-year period; evaluation of clinical features, laboratory tests (blood, urine), radiological examinations (duplex and real-time ultrasound, renal sonography, voiding cysturethrography [VCUG]) and urodynamics. RESULTS: 49 patients with an overall mean age of 9.8 years (range 0.2-15.3 years) presented with AE. In the same period, 31 subjects required surgery for TT. Local pain on palpation of the epididymis and spontaneous pain in the testis and/or epididymis were the most common clinical signs. In 2 patients, urine cultures revealed significant bacteriuria. Duplex and real-time ultrasound showed no false negative result. 41% of the patients revealed concomitant urological diseases, but only in 1 patient was treatment influenced by the uropathy. 16/21 older boys (76%) demonstrated normal uroflow patterns. CONCLUSION: AE seems to be more common than acute TT. Urinalysis and urine culture should be performed for all children with AE. High resolution ultrasound with an experienced investigator is able to exclude TT reliably so that routine surgical exploration is seldom necessary.

[Acute epididymitis].

Epididymitis may be acute (symptoms last less than 6 weeks) or chronic (more than 3 months). Acute epididymitis is almost always unilateral. In sexually active men under 35 years of age, acute epididymitis is frequently caused by Chlamydia trachomatis and less frequently by Neisseria gonorrhoeae and is usually associated with overt or subclinical urethritis. Acute epididymitis in older men, children or following urinary tract instrumentation is commonly caused by gram-negative bacilli. The epididymis is sometimes the site of metastatic infection, such as tuberculosis. It is important to differentiate epididymitis from other causes for acute scrotum, such as testicular torsion and tumor. The cause of acute scrotum especially in children cannot always be identified. Therefore, Doppler ultrasonography and radionuclide scans are often used. In infants and young boys, genitourinary abnormalities are causative factors, and therefore should be excluded by imaging. Supportive measures and antimicrobial agents are the mainstay of therapy.

Chronic tuberculous epididymitis: color Doppler US findings with histopathologic correlation.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to determine the color Doppler features of tuberculous epididymitis and to correlate these findings with histopathologic findings. METHODS: Color Doppler ultrasound (US) findings of 12 histopathologically proven tuberculous epididymitis and tuberculous epididymo-orchitis in 11 consecutive patients were retrospectively analyzed. Color Doppler US findings of tuberculous epididymitis were correlated with histopathologic findings. RESULTS: Color Doppler US findings of tuberculous epididymitis demonstrated no blood flow in the epididymal lesions except for focal linear or spotty flow signals in the peripheral portion. These findings correlated well with pathologic findings; the central portion of the epididymal lesions demonstrated granulomas with caseation necrosis, and the peripheral portion of the epididymal lesions had several medium to small vessels. CONCLUSIONS: Color Doppler US may be helpful for differential diagnosis of tuberculous epididymitis and non-tuberculous epididymitis.

An unusual case of ureteral ectopia in the seminal vesicle: diagnosis and surgical management.

We report the case of a young man who presented with numerous episodes of ipsilateral epididymitis. Selected imaging studies with consideration of urogenital embryology lead to the rare diagnosis of a dysplastic kidney with ureteral ectopia in the seminal vesicle. After nephroureterectomy and vesiculectomy, convalescence was uneventful. No specific symptoms, equivocal diagnostic findings and the small number of patients limit the surgical experience in diseases of the seminal vesicle. Suprainguinal extravesical extirpation, however, appears to be an excellent operative approach in cases of unilateral seminal vesicle cysts.

Resistive index of the intrascrotal artery in scrotal inflammatory disease.

PURPOSE: To investigate the utility of the resistive indices (RIs) of the epididymal and intratesticular arteries, and to establish diagnostic criteria for scrotal inflammatory disease on the basis of quantitative color Doppler sonography. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We prospectively examined 29 consecutive patients with scrotal pain, and 15 normal control subjects. The RIs of the intratesticular and epididymal arteries were obtained from color Doppler sonographs. RESULTS: The RIs of the testicular artery in epididymoorchitis were significantly lower than those in normal control subjects and in epididymitis (p < 0.01) while the RIs of the testicular artery in epididymitis and control subjects were similar (p > 0.5). With a cut-off value of RI = 0.5, sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and positive and negative predictive values were 91%, 94%, 94%, 83%, and 77% respectively. The mean RI of the epididymal arteries in epididymitis and epididymoorchitis was 0.49 +/- 0.11. A high level of diagnostic accuracy in scrotal inflammatory disease was achieved when the RIs of the intratesticular and epididymal arteries were less than 0.5 and 0.7 respectively. CONCLUSION: The RI of the intrascrotal artery would give a more objective evaluation than subjective assessment and could provide diagnostic criteria for scrotal inflammatory disease.

Evaluation of acute scrotal pain by color-coded duplex sonography.

In light of the high sensitivity of color-coded duplex sonography (CCDS), we analyzed a group of patients with acute scrotal pain to evaluate the use of CCDS in routine clinical examination. During March 1988 through April 1991, CCDS was used in 31 patients with acute scrotal pain before they underweight surgery in our department. In 15 patients, the structural and perfusion changes of the scrotal contents were such that a definitive diagnosis was possible. In the rest of the patients, the pathologic changes seen with CCDS were more complex, and the correct interpretation needed more expertise; this was especially true in patients with partial torsion, posttorsion status, and torsion of hydatids. CCDS with the simultaneous display of anatomic scrotal structures and blood flow over the entire scan field is an excellent method for evaluating patients with acute scrotal pain. However, apart from the classical case of no perfusion (as in testicular torsion) and increased perfusion (as in inflammation), more complex changes are more difficult to interpret. The correct diagnosis in the latter cases requires considerable experience and evaluation of all facts, including clinical history, results of palpation, and structural and perfusion changes of the scrotal contents.

Quantitative Doppler assessment of acute scrotal inflammation.

PURPOSE: To establish quantitative Doppler criteria for acute unilateral epididymitis and/or orchitis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Triplex ultrasonography (US) was used to prospectively evaluate 31 patients with acute hemiscrotal pain and 15 asymptomatic control subjects. Morphology and perfusion were assessed, and peak systolic velocities (PSVs) were recorded. Ratios of PSV were calculated by using values from the right and left sides. RESULTS: PSVs in control subjects differed significantly from those in patients (P < .0001). A PSV > or = 15 cm/sec produced diagnostic accuracy of 90% for orchitis and 93% for epididymitis: Five of six false-negative findings were in patients younger than age 15 years. Epididymal PSV ratios > or = 1.7 or testicular ratios > or = 1.9 were diagnostic of acute inflammation (P < .0001). In three cases, morphologic and color Doppler findings were normal and only the PSV ratios were diagnostic. CONCLUSION: PSV and PSV ratios provide diagnostic criteria for acute unilateral epididymitis and/or orchitis that are more accurate than morphologic evaluation and color flow imaging either alone or in combination.

[Acute nongonococcal epididymitis--pharmacological and therapeutic aspects of levofloxacin].

We performed basic and clinical studies on the effects of a new oral quinolone derivative, levofloxacin (LVFX, Code No. DR 3355) which is an optical l-isomer of ofloxacin, in acute epididymitis. LVFX was administered in a dose of 200 mg to prostatic cancer patients 2 hours before operation. The mean concentration of LVFX in the tissues of testis and epididymis were 4.73 micrograms/g and 313-3.6 micrograms/g, respectively. Tissue/Serum ratios were 1.63 and 1.16-1.32, respectively. LVFX was administered in a dose of 100 mg three times daily for 13 days to healthy male volunteers. Semen and blood samples were taken 2 hrs after 7th and last day of administration. The concentration of LVFX in semen were 1.19 micrograms/ml (7th day) and 1.32 micrograms/ml (13th day). Semen/serum ratios were 1.12 and 1.26, respectively. No affection of LVFX on the sperm was observed. Antimicrobial activity of LVFX to C. trachomatis showed good MICs of 0.25-1.0 micrograms/ml. LVFX was administered in a dose of 100 mg two or three times daily for 14 days to 23 patients with acute epididymitis. The overall efficacy rate based on a criteria for acute epididymitis showed 100% (excellent: 16, good: 4, 20/20). A better efficacy rate was obtained on the 14th day than 7th day. No subjective or objective adverse reactions were observed.

Scrotal inflammatory disease: color Doppler US findings.

A study of 45 patients with 51 cases of hemiscrotal inflammatory disease was done to determine the color Doppler ultrasonographic appearance of scrotal inflammatory disorders. The diagnosis was ultimately established by means of appropriate response to antibiotic treatment (47 cases) or surgery (four cases). In all cases, there was evidence of hyperemia: an increased number and concentration of detectable vessels in the affected portion of the scrotum. In 17 cases, the gray scale images were normal, and the only evidence of inflammation was the presence of hypervascularity. Abnormally decreased epididymal vascular resistance was detected in 14 cases of epididymitis; abnormally decreased testicular vascular resistance was detected in six cases of orchitis. Spontaneous venous flow was present in 18 patients. The authors conclude that color Doppler can demonstrate the hyperemic response to scrotal inflammatory disease and that, in the proper clinical setting, it can supplement the gray scale findings and increase diagnostic confidence.

[Sexual function after the surgical treatment of acute epididymitis]. / Polovaia funktsiia posle operativnogo lecheniia ostrogo épididimita.

Operative management of acute epididymitis performed in 150 patients aged 18-67 produced better therapeutic results compared to 150 patients treated conservatively (9.1 patient day versus 13.3 days). Follow-up for 2-4 years showed marked intergroup differences as regards anatomic changes in the epididymis revealed by palpation and ultrasound scanning. Echographic pattern was altered in 25 operated on and 92 patients treated conservatively. Copulative function was diminished in few cases in those operated on and much more frequently after conservative treatment, libido and erection in particular. Reproductive function was impaired more profoundly after conservative treatment as well. These patients demonstrated lower levels of testosterone and estradiol but higher content of LH and FSH. The latter hormones did not vary with age among the groups. Better effect of scrotal drainage in acute nonspecific epididymitides is attributed to the influence of inflammation-affected epididymis on the contralateral testicle more intensive under conditions of closed (nondrained) inflammation.

Testicular function after unilateral bacterial epididymo-orchitis.

In order to determine whether bacterial infection of the gonads may account for some male-related infertility, the fertility status of 45 young men who developed gonococcal urethritis and then epididymo-orchitis were studied prospectively. The fertility potential of the subjects was evaluated through history of paternity, repeated semen examinations, serum follicle-stimulating hormone determinations, and testicular biopsy. Before infection, 14 married men (100%) had proved their fertility through their children. Two years after infection, only 21% of these fathers and 40% of all subjects produced semen considered adequate for conception. The semen values in the rest were comparable to those of infertile/subfertile men. Although the lesion was clinically confined to one testis, testicular biopsy and follicle-stimulating hormone studies showed that testicular damage involved both testes. The study showed that bacterial gonadal infection may result in permanent azoospermia or oligospermia and this without question may result in male-related barrenness.