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
. 2023 Jan 23;10(2):205.
doi: 10.3390/children10020205.

Abdominal Cryptorchidism with Complete Dissociation between the Testis and Deferent Duct Mimicking Testicular Regression Syndrome

Vladimir V Sizonov  1   2 , Alexey G Makarov  2 , Johannes M Mayr  3 , Vladimir V Vigera  1 , Mikhail I Kogan  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Abdominal Cryptorchidism with Complete Dissociation between the Testis and Deferent Duct Mimicking Testicular Regression Syndrome

Vladimir V Sizonov et al. Children (Basel). .

Abstract

Complete separation of the deferent duct from the epididymis in cryptorchid testes residing in the abdomen is an extremely rare variant of developmental disorders of the testis and epididymis. Available sources mention only three clinical cases similar to our observations. The unique anatomic aspects of this disorder hamper the correct diagnosis of an intra-abdominal cryptorchid testis. Two boys with nonpalpable left-sided cryptorchidism underwent diagnostic laparoscopy, revealing an intra-abdominally located testis. The epididymis was completely separated from the deferent duct, and the epididymis and testis were supplied by testicular vessels. Exploration of the inguinal canal revealed blind-ending deferent ducts. The testis was brought down through the inguinal canal and fixed in the scrotum in both boys. The follow-up examination at 6 months revealed no signs of testicular atrophy or malposition of the testis in either patient. With our observations in mind, the exclusive use of a transscrotal or transinguinal approach as the initial surgical exploration in the treatment of patients with nonpalpable forms of cryptorchidism may be inappropriate. Careful laparoscopic examination of the abdominal cavity is indispensable in children with suspected testicular regression syndrome or nonpalpable forms of cryptorchidism.

Keywords: abdominal cryptorchidism; deferent duct; dissociation; epididymis; malformation; testicular regression syndrome.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Deferent duct with hypoplastic “testicular” vessels entering the inguinal canal.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Testis with epididymis attached to testicular vessels but disconnected from the deferent duct.
Figure 3
Figure 3
(A) The inguinal canal was opened. The arrow indicates the blind-ending deferent duct. (B) Testis with epididymis attached to testicular vessels.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The left testis was fixed in the upper scrotum.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Deferent duct (1) entered the inguinal canal. The testis with epididymis (2) was connected to testicular vessels but was disconnected from the deferent duct.
Figure 6
Figure 6
(A) The inguinal canal was opened. The deferent duct appeared blind-ended. (B) The arrow indicates the deferent duct. The tip of the forceps indicates the blind end of the deferent duct. The epididymis was not connected to the deferent duct.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Sijstermans K., Hack W.W.M., Meijer R.W., Van Der Voort-Doedens L.M. The frequency of undescended testis from birth to adulthood: A review. Int. J. Androl. 2007;31:1–11. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2605.2007.00770.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Acerini C.L., Miles H.L., Dunger D.B., Ong K.K., Hughes I.A. The descriptive epidemiology of congenital and acquired crytorchidism in a UK infant cohort. Arch. Dis. Child. 2009;94:868–872. doi: 10.1136/adc.2008.150219. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hrivatakis G., Astfalk W., Schmidt A., Hartwig A., Kugler T., Heim T., Clausner A., Frunder A., Weber H., Loff S., et al. The Timing of Surgery for Undescended Testistestis—A retrospective multicenter analysis. Dtsch. Arztebl. Int. 2014;111:649–657. doi: 10.3238/arztebl.2014.0649. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bergbrant S., Omling E., Björk J., Hagander L. Cryptorchidism in Sweden: A Nationwide Study of Prevalence, Operative Management, and Complications. J. Pediatr. 2018;194:197–203. doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2017.09.062. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Mavrogenis S., Ács N., Czeizel A.E. No increases in the rate of undescended testis in Hungary during the last 50 years: A population-based study. Congenit. Anom. 2015;55:145–149. doi: 10.1111/cga.12106. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources