Question

Galen had just celebrated his 6-month birthday. He and his parents had recently moved to a new city. His mother, Joan, brought him to a nearby pediatrician’s office for a well-infant exam. Joan mentioned something she wondered about: Galen appeared to have only one testicle. Galen’s former pediatrician had said the other testicle would eventually descend, but Joan was now wondering why it hadn’t yet. Joan didn’t know of any history of problems with genital development on either side of the family. She had used alcohol “moderately” during pregnancy, and had gestational diabetes while she was carrying Galen. She had never smoked in her life. 1. What is Galen’s condition called? 2. By what age would the testicle often descend without treatment? 3. List several treatment options for the eventuality that the testicle does not descend on its own.

Answer 1

1) Galen's condition is called as Cryptorchidism. It is nothing but the undecended testicle.

2) The testicle usually decend at 8 months of gestation. If the baby is premature this happens.Usually the testes in most babies decend atleast by 3rd month .But if the testes has not even decended after six months it is a concern for parents to think ,because early the treatment is faster the recovery and the result .Here probably the baby needs the help of a pediatrician.

3)The treatment option for this is

• Orchydopexy

A surgical procedure where the undecended testicle is implanted into the scrotum.The surgeon decides about the surgery . The baby has to undergo certain simple test like Sonography to rule out the presence or absence of testicle.MRI scan to identify the location of the testicle.

• Laparoscopy helps to do a corrective surgery during the procedure