Clinical Observations on Acute Scrotum

Kwon, Byoung Jo; Kwon, Sung Won; Kim, Dong Han

Abstract

Acute scrotum is any pathologic condition of the scrotum or intrascrotal contents that requires emergency medical or surgical management. Management of each disease entity is different, but the differential diagnosis is very difficult. So many testes had been lost due to delay of the adequate surgery and unnecessary explorations had been taken under the misdiagnosis. Clinical observations were carried out on 59 patients with acute scrotum admitted to the department of urology, Ewha Womans University Hospital during 10 years from April, 1976 to March, 1986. There were 36 patients with acute epididymitis, 6 spermatic cord torsion and 17 scrotal trauma, the mean age was 32.6 year old in acute epididymitis, 12.8 spermatic cord torsion and 23.5 scrotal trauma. Symptoms and signs showed no significant difference from each disease entity, but Prehn`s sign was somewhat useful to differentiate each one. In half patients with spermatic cord torsion that had arrived to the hospital within 24 hours from onset of symptom, the testes could be saved. Testicular scan with 99mTc-perte- chnetate was performed in 14 patients and the diagnostic accuracy was 93%, 21 patients with acute epididymitis had urinary tract infection and spermatic cord torsion occurred in 2 patients with cryptorchidism.