Laparoscopic orchiopexy: short-term outcomes. Experience of a single centre.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Increased infertility and smaller volume accompany undescended testis. Timing of orchiopexy is still a matter of debate. We evaluated the growth of non-palpable testes after laparoscopic orchiopexy according to age at surgery, intraoperative findings and type of procedure. METHODS: Forty-one boys undergoing laparoscopy for nonpalpable testes were retrospectively reviewed and divided into two groups, ≤18 months and >18 months, according to their age at surgery. RESULTS: At follow-up, 14 testes in the younger group had normal size, while 3 atrophied either after single (2) or two stage procedure (1). Similarly, in older boys 11 testes grew normally, while 5 atrophied after both procedures. CONCLUSIONS: Most of the non-palpable testes grew normally after laparoscopic orchiopexy and the postoperative volume seemed independent from the surgical strategy. Both techniques led to a few cases of testicular hypotrophy. In our experience, the age at surgery did not affect the outcome in terms of testicular growth.