title: Palpation of the testes in draftees: acceptance on the occasion of muster and implication for health promotion.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Testicular cancer is the most prevalent malignant neoplasm in young men. The key problem in screening for malignant testicular tumors and their main risk factors (undescended testes and testes which descended only after medical treatment) is to reach the target group of "young men".
  
  
  METHODS
  In five different military medical centers of German Armed Forces, 1600 young draftees were investigated by a standardized interview at recruitment examination between 2001 and 2003.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ninety-five percent of respondents reported that they had been palpated at testes during physical examination. The percentage of draftees not palpated at their testes varied between muster centers, but did not depend on the physician's gender. Only two draftees had refused explicitly the palpation of testes. The prevalence of observed pathologic alterations of the testes was 1.69%, including two cases of cryptorchidism, 19 of varicocele, and 6 cases with other benign alterations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The simple and effective examination of testes should not be restricted to draftees, but promoted by compulsory health insurance funds, offered and performed routinely by all physicians who have access to the target group of "young men".
authors.affiliation: Military Medical Center, Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Hermann C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Roemer
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Von Kathen
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Schöps
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Golka
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005858:Germany; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D008889:Military Personnel; D010173:Palpation; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D010808:Physical Examination / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013736:Testicular Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013737:Testis / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000473:pathology