10 unspeakable secrets about testicles

Testicles are the most important sexual organ of a man. It produces sperm and secretes androgens. It is the basis of what makes a man a man. Don’t wait until the pain actually strikes before you get the spotlight. Why not observe and understand earlier to prevent problems before they happen?

1. The redness and swelling behind the "diamond" - epididymitis

Causes and consequences: The epididymis is the surrounding posterior edge of the testicle,

Sperm is temporarily stored in it after production here. Epididymitis is more common in people around the age of 30. It is mostly caused by bacterial infection of the urinary tract that has not healed, causing the bacteria to enter the epididymis through the lumen of the vas deferens. It often occurs with posterior urethritis, prostatitis, seminal vesiculitis, etc. The location can be unilateral or bilateral, and the onset time can be acute or slow.

Your examination: The entire scrotum is red, swollen, hot and painful, sensitive to touch, and burning when urinating. The scrotum is painful when resting, but symptoms are relieved when lying on the back.

Doctor’s treatment: Prescribe you some antibiotics to relieve acute pain. Then put a cold compress on the testicle and raise it up at the same time. You can use rolled socks or medical gauze to put it underneath. If you can't do it yourself, you can wear a pair of fixed briefs - it can also reduce the discomfort and swelling in the spermatic cord area. To prevent recurrence: Although men are much less likely to get urinary tract infections than women, once they occur, the consequences can be serious. If you have a burning sensation when urinating, you must seek medical attention immediately.

2. Bacterial erosion of the "diamond" - orchitis

Causes and consequences: mostly caused by epididymitis spreading directly to the testicles, caused by bacteria. Acute orchitis in children is usually caused by the mumps virus.

Your examination: It is similar to epididymitis, but the redness of the testicles is not so obvious and intense. You can clearly see that one or both testicles are swollen and painful when pressed, and the scrotal skin is also obviously red and swollen, and feels hot to the touch.

Doctor’s treatment: Since severe orchitis can cause loss of fertility, doctors will also use antibiotics in addition to painkillers; in addition, cold compresses should be applied to the testicles. If doctors do not treat it properly in the acute phase, bacterial orchitis can form an abscess or evolve into chronic orchitis.

To prevent recurrence: Children can be vaccinated against mumps.

3. "A few bugs got into the scrotum" - Varicocele

Causes and consequences: The incidence of varicocele accounts for 10% of men aged 30 to 40 years old. 90% of it occurs on the left side and is caused by blood stasis in the spermatic vein, causing the venous plexus to dilate, tortuous and lengthen. Varicocele can also be caused by kidney tumors. The reason why varicocele deserves attention is that it may be accompanied by testicular atrophy and sperm production impairment, leading to infertility.

Your examination: You may feel a dull pain, like a small bag of bugs burrowing into your scrotum, or you may feel nothing at all. However, when standing, the varicose venous plexus can be seen or felt in the spermatic cord, and varicose veins can be seen to be aggravated by vigorously bulging the belly and increasing abdominal pressure; a few will suffer from neurasthenia at the same time. In more serious cases, there may be swelling and pain in the scrotum and low back pain after standing for a long time, but this can be relieved by lying down and resting.

Doctor’s treatment: Varicocele will be found through special examination methods, such as ultrasound diagnosis and infrared contact scrotal temperature measurement, and the doctor will determine whether your symptoms require treatment. At this time, you can either inject drugs to close it, or tie it up to seal the blood vessel blockage. This is a minor operation that requires anesthesia and takes about 30 minutes.

To prevent recurrence: Since varicocele is a type of venous aneurysm, as long as new venous aneurysms appear repeatedly in the body, new varicocele may appear.

4. "Third testicle" - seminal cyst

Causes and consequences: benign cysts caused by spermatozoa staying in the testicles or epididymis. Most of the swelling and bulges are like a sugar cube. It's so big that people jokingly call it a third testicle, which thankfully is very rare.

Your examination: Although there will be no pain, the bulge looks like a round ball growing above your testicles and can be felt alone. Under the illumination of a flashlight in a dark room, the semen cyst glows.

Doctor’s treatment: No treatment is necessary at all. If you insist on getting rid of those lumps, your doctor can surgically remove them for you. To prevent recurrence: Avoid trauma to the testicles and scrotum. Have sex regularly and avoid prolonged sexual urges.

5. Excess fluid - scrotal hydrocele

Causes and consequences: Caused by excess production of tissue water between the membrane layers surrounding one or both testicles. Sometimes it occurs after a testicular injury or orchitis, but in most cases no cause can be found at all.

Your examination: The scrotum swells and bulges. Sometimes the cyst can even reach the size of a football, but it does not feel painful. Doctor's treatment: The excess tissue water can be sucked out through a trivial operation under anesthesia. In addition, the doctor will need to suture the small holes in the scrotum that leak out fluid.

6. The trauma that caused the accident - testicular bruises

Causes and consequences: When the testicles are damaged, there will be local swelling and blood bruising. And because the scrotal skin is loose and the testicular blood flows back abundantly, it is easy to cause hematoma and infection after injury. Strenuous exercise, sexual behavior, and violence can sometimes cause strong contraction of the cremaster muscle, making the testicles "even worse."

After trauma, if the blood vessels supplying nutrition to the testicles are seriously damaged, they will atrophy and become necrotic, causing impotence or sexual dysfunction.

Your examination: If you feel severe pain after testicular trauma, you should use a flashlight to look at your scrotum in a dark room. If light cannot pass through the scrotum, it means there is a hematoma.

Doctor’s treatment: Generally, you must sit or lie down first to check for ulcers or bleeding. If the testicles on both sides are symmetrical and not misaligned, you can use a wide band to support them to reduce shaking and relieve pain; if there is no wide band, you can tear off old clothes instead, and they can be fixed as long as they are held up; if there is swelling, you can use cold compresses to help control it Internal bleeding.

In case you do it again: Even at the first moment you may think: You will not die. But it takes a few minutes for that heart-wrenching pain to hit, and you really realize: something is really wrong.

(Excerpted from: Medical and Medicine Network)

7. A rough blow in the crotch - testicle rupture

Causes and consequences: If the following is true Unfortunately, the testicles are located inside the scrotum and outside the body, making them the most vulnerable part of a man's body. Closed injuries are more common, such as kicking, grabbing, squeezing, and riding; open injuries, such as knife stabbings and gunshot wounds, are less common except in war years.

Your examination: You instinctively curl up your body, praying that the severe pain in your testicles will disappear as soon as possible. In severe cases, fainting, scrotal hematoma, and unclear testicular outline may occur, accompanied by sweating, nausea, and dizziness.

Doctor's treatment: Using ultrasound examination and touch, the doctor can completely determine whether the testicle has ruptured. Apply cold compress first. Doctors will try to preserve testicular tissue during debridement. Once the spermatic artery is ruptured or the testicle is severely ruptured beyond repair, the testicle must be removed, drainage must be placed in the scrotum, and antibiotics must be used to prevent recurrence of infection.

To prevent recurrence: Strengthen protection below the waist.

8. Zipper's sin - scrotal skin injury

Causes and consequences: scratches, abrasions, or bruises caused by zippers.

Your examination: ecchymosis and hematoma on the scrotal skin. If the scrotum is torn, the testicles are exposed to the surface.

Doctor’s treatment: Scrotal skin wounds can heal quickly, so there is no need for special emergency treatment. Only consult a specialist for larger wounds. If the skin is not torn, you can rest in bed and apply local cold compress to relieve pain; instead, you need to inject tetanus antitoxin injection, locally debridement, remove foreign bodies, restore the testicles, and use antibiotics to prevent reinfection; if the scrotal skin is completely torn If it prolapses, surgery will be required to reconstruct the scrotum.

To prevent recurrence: avoid trauma to the scrotal area.

9. Suffocating twisting - testicular torsion

Causes and consequences: Testicular torsion is not uncommon and can occur from newborns to the elderly, but it is most common in children and those aged 20 to 25 The incidence rate is higher among people aged 10 to 20 years. This torsion may be removed due to testicular necrosis. The longer the delay, the greater the possibility of testicular loss of function. Even if the testicles are not removed by then, testicular atrophy often occurs due to prolonged ischemia, which causes the sperm function produced by the testicles to be destroyed. The essential cause of torsion is usually Congenital malformation of reproductive organs. If the cremaster muscle is stimulated during exercise, trauma, or sleep, its contraction will be strengthened, causing the cremaster muscle fibers to appear spiral-shaped. In addition, coupled with the weight of the testicles, especially cryptorchidism patients with only one exposed testicle are more likely to develop this disease. Testicular torsion tends to occur at night or early in the morning.

Your examination: Suddenly you are unable to move, and you feel swelling, tenderness, and severe pain in one side of your scrotum. The pain spreads to the lower abdomen, groin, or thighs; not only that, nausea, vomiting, and fever come one after another.

Doctor’s treatment: In the early stage of testicular torsion, good results can be achieved with about half an hour of “manual reduction” surgery. However, as the disease develops over time, surgical treatment is the only option. Typically six hours after testicular torsion, irreversible damage is done so that the testicle must be removed. Mild testicular torsion causes severe pain at the time, but it can be quickly relieved after a short rest, and normal activities can be carried out after bandaging; once it is hit, touched, pinched, etc., severe pain will occur, and severe pain will occur in severe cases. shock. If unfortunately it happens, you should ask a doctor to do a routine semen examination after treatment to understand the function of the testicle on the affected side. This is especially important for unmarried men.

To prevent recurrence: If a man aged 20 to 25 suddenly develops scrotal swelling and pain, he should consider the possibility of testicular torsion and go to the urology department of the hospital for examination and treatment in time.

10. Tumors that challenge the body - testicular cancer

Causes and consequences: Testicular cancer is one of the most common cancers in young men. According to statistics, the incidence of testicular cancer in men is ten Seven out of ten thousand cases, and increasing year by year, are usually caused by the metastasis of malignant tumors. Your examination: There is no warning of pain or swelling and discomfort in the scrotum before cancer occurs. Most of them are accidentally touched when taking a bath. If the swelling is hard, you should see a doctor immediately. A few people may suffer from redness, swelling, heat and pain in the testicles and chills throughout the body due to acute orchitis.

Doctor’s treatment: First, a suspected cancerous tumor was discovered through ultrasound examination, and several tumor indicators increased. Once cancer is determined, the testicles along with the spermatic cord must be removed. Usually, it is rare for both testicles to become cancerous, so fertility will be preserved. Even if the tumor has not yet formed serious metastasis, early measures must be taken to avoid deterioration. Generally speaking, if the tumor has not metastasized, the chance of cure is 95%.

Even if cancer cells have spread, the chance of cure is 80 to 90 percent higher than for many other cancers.

To prevent recurrence: It is recommended that you touch your testicles frequently to detect abnormalities early, obtain a diagnosis from a doctor and receive timely treatment, so that you have a higher chance of cure. Remember: time is life. In addition, if primary acute orchitis fails to respond to medical treatment, the possibility of cancer should be considered. The testicles are elastic and expand with heat and shrink with cold. The best time to check is after a hot water bath, because the scrotum is relaxed at this time.

Reference:/article/108/136/2005114132756.htm