title: Ultrastructural evidence of the onset of testicular pathological conditions in the cryptorchid human testis within the first year of life.
abstract: Pathological fibrosis of testicular intertubular tissues may be evident in the cryptorchid testis of children 1 year old. A characteristic feature of such testes is massive collagen deposition, which disrupts the regular order of the interstitium, in particular the peritubular layer of cells, by the time the child is 4 years old. These conclusions are based on ultrastructural examination of testicular biopsies collected at orchiopexy from 13 boys with cryptorchidism between 1 and 13 years old. These findings persuade us that orchiopexy should be performed in children about 1 year old and, certainly, no later than 2 years. Otherwise, eventual normal testicular function is highly unlikely.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003456:Cryptorchidism / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D013737:Testis / Q000648:ultrastructure*