Intravaginal testicular torsion in newborns. To fix or not to fix the contralateral testis?


Submitted: 17 November 2014
Accepted: 17 November 2014
Published: 31 October 2013
Abstract Views: 1441
PDF: 1287
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Authors

  • G. Bordin Department of Pediatric Surgery, Padiglione Alfieri, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico Milano, Italy.
  • F. Parolini Department of Pediatric Surgery, Padiglione Alfieri, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico Milano, Italy.
  • A. Morandi Department of Pediatric Surgery, Padiglione Alfieri, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico Milano, Italy.
  • G. Farris Department of Pediatric Surgery, Padiglione Alfieri, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico Milano, Italy.
  • E.M. Leva Department of Pediatric Surgery, Padiglione Alfieri, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico Milano, Italy.
  • M. Torricelli Department of Pediatric Surgery, Padiglione Alfieri, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico Milano, Italy.
Scrotal swelling suggesting testicular torsion is a rare urological emergency which requires a clinical urgent evaluation and most of the times must be managed surgically. In newborns it can occur in the postnatal period, usually within the twenty-eighth day of life, or more frequently in utero, during the descent of the testis into the scrotum. Usually its poor fixedness allows the testis an abnormal mobility inside the scrotum, configuring the framework of extravaginal torsion. On the contrary during the perinatal period a twist that takes place inside the tunica vaginalis, known as intravaginal torsion, is extremely uncommon and only few cases are well documented in the literature. Authors present a rare case of intravaginal testicular torsion occurred in perinatal period. In this situation only the early surgical exploration of the scrotum may allow the rescue of the gonad, although in rare cases. Timing of surgical treatment and need for contralateral testicular fixation remain controversial. However since the anatomical defect of the tunica vaginalis can be bilateral the surgical fixation even of the contralateral testis is important, now or later, in order to prevent any future torsion of this gonad. The authors also present a brief review of recent literature on the subject.

Bordin, G., Parolini, F., Morandi, A., Farris, G., Leva, E., & Torricelli, M. (2013). Intravaginal testicular torsion in newborns. To fix or not to fix the contralateral testis?. La Pediatria Medica E Chirurgica, 35(5). https://doi.org/10.4081/pmc.2013.32

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