Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2017 Sep 1;3(1):130-133.
doi: 10.1089/cren.2017.0086. eCollection 2017.

Cowper's Syringocele in Adolescent Male: Case Report

Milena Taskovska  1 , Simon Hawlina  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Cowper's Syringocele in Adolescent Male: Case Report

Milena Taskovska et al. J Endourol Case Rep. .

Abstract

Background: Cowper's syringocele is a rare condition, uncommon in the adult population. It is more common in the pediatric population. Patients could be asymptomatic or present with irritative and/or obstructive symptoms. Ultrasonography (US) of perineal region, pelvis MRI, or urethrography are the most often used diagnostic modalities. Surgical treatment is indicated in all symptomatic patients. Endoscopic approach is preferred over open surgery. Unroofing of syringocele with cold knife or holmium yttrium aluminium garnet (YAG) laser is effective treatment. Case Presentation: A 17-year-old Caucasian male presented at our emergency department with irritative symptoms. US of perineal region showed cystic formation near urethra. Pelvis MRI showed Cowper's gland syringocele. Endoscopic unroofing with holmium YAG laser was performed. Six months postoperatively the patient was asymptomatic and satisfied with the treatment. Conclusion: Cowper's syringocele is a rare condition. Urologist should consider this condition in pediatric and adolescent patients with irritative and/or obstructive symptoms. Pelvis MRI and perineum US are the main diagnostic tools. Surgical treatment is effective. Endoscopic approach is preferred. Open surgery is indicated in complicated cases and in cases when endoscopic treatment fails.

Keywords: Cowper's gland; LUTS; adolescent; endoscopic unroofing; syringocele.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

No competing financial interests exist.

Figures

<b>FIG. 1.</b>
FIG. 1.
Preoperative pelvis MRI. (1) Transverse section. (2) Sagittal section. Red arrow points at Cowper's syringocele.
<b>FIG. 2.</b>
FIG. 2.
Unroofing Cowper's syringocele. (1) Endoscopic identification of syringocele. (2) Use of holmium YAG laser for unroofing. (3) Unroofing Cowper's syringocele. (4) Endoscopic view after completion of unroofing.
<b>FIG. 3.</b>
FIG. 3.
Postoperative pelvis MRI. (1) Transverse section. (2) Sagittal section.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Shaw MBK, Cole O, Terry TR. Cowper's syringocele causing painful hematuria in an adult. ScientificWorldJournal 2004;4:308–310 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Awakura Y, Nonomura M, Fukuyama T. Cowper's syringocele causing voiding disturbance in an adult. Int J Urol 2000:340–342 - PubMed
    1. Melquist J, Sharma V, Sciullo D, McCaffrey H, Khan SA. Current diagnosis and management of syringocele: a review. Int Braz J Urol 2010;36:3–9 - PubMed
    1. Maizels M, Stephens FD, King LR, Firlit CF. Cowper's syringocele: A classification of dilatations of Cowper's gland duct based upon clinical characteristics of 8 boys. J Urol 1983;129:111–114 - PubMed
    1. Surana S, Elshazly M, Allam A, Jayappa S, AlRefai D. A case of giant Cowper's gland syringocele in an adult male patient. Case Rep Urol 2015;2015:682042 - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources