Rupture of the Testes From Blunt Trauma

ABSTRACT

Background: Traumatic rupture of the testis is rare. Methods: Two patients with the condition are discussed in this article. The first; a 32 year old father; presented with post traumatic swelling and pain in the scrotum. He was a passenger on a motorcycle which was hit by a car. He was thrown up and landed on the windscreen of the car. He complained of pain in the scrotum and was quickly taken to a near-by clinic where a scrotal laceration was sutured. He continued to have severe pain from the swollen testes and was transferred to another clinic for urological attention. The second patient; a 26 year old man; was hit on the scrotum with a police handcuff. He presented with lower abdominal pain; scrotal and left testicular swellings. Results: The scrotum was explored in each patient. In the 32 year-old; the two testes ruptured transversely but were viable. Each was debrided and closed with chromic catgut. The patient was commenced on antibiotics. The following morning; the testes were much less swollen. The wound healed primarily in one week. At three weeks after injury; he claimed to have satisfactory erections but declined investigation of semen analysis as well as serum testosterone. In the 26 year old; exploration revealed a transverse rupture of the left testis. This was sutured. The wounds healed primarily. Conclusion: It is suggested that blunt trauma resulting in testicular swelling indicates testicular exploration and ultra sound investigation for diagnosis may not be necessary