undescended testicle

[honeyy123]

Hi all sorry if this causes any upset or isn't allowed I didn't really know what topic to put it in but my baby boy who is 11months soon to be 1 next month has had a letter to see a paediatric surgeon as only one of his testicles has dropped and apparently if it hasn't already by now they it most probably won't on it's own I'm just wondering has anyone else been through this with their child before obviously I'm just worried because the first thing I hear is surgery and I immediately panic as no mum would like the sound of that for their baby is there any advice or reassurance that anyone could give who knows or has been through this before I would be highly appreciative thankyou and again sorry if this is not allowed

Paediatric nurse. It's very common. And the surgery is a quick day case. And they quickly recover

My DH (not young!) had this.

They decended it for him, and it never proper grew.

Later, he got testicular cancer. One thing they told him is that more commonly now they just whip it off, cos cancer isn't uncommon in that circumstance

Hi OP, I made a thread about this a few years ago when my son had the operation. Got lots of helpful advice so here's the link in case of use:
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/childrens_health/4004641-Orchidopexy-for-undescended-testicle-at-3-5-years-old-any-advice

They didn't pick it up at our newborn tests so my boy didn't have it done until he was older, 3 and a half. I know it's scary but honestly I think it's better for them to do it as babies as they remember much less. It's very routine surgery, very safe, and no overnight stay is needed.

Regarding the PP whose son got cancer, there is more risk of that for boys with undescended testes but I certainly didn't get advised that they'd remove the testicle as a routine thing. You can speak to the surgeon or your GP for advice but we were just told to emphasise to our son the importance of checking for lumps when he's old enough - obviously good to talk to all boys about this but more so for those with a testicle issue which can increase risk.

Happy to answer any questions if you have specific worries.

My DS had this operation at around 18 months old, it was picked up at birth and we were then referred. Basically one of his didn't develop so when they went in they found it had 'died' and just took it out due to the risk of testicular cancer later in life and then they stitched the other one in place to reduce risk of torsion in later life and to protect fertility. It was an outpatient operation, had to fast him which wasn't ideal but fine, the op itself was only around half an hour or so. I think if they have to actually pull it down it's a bit longer. He was fine after, just a bit sore for a few days and had to be careful with nappies etc. the worst part was him being taken away by the nurse as I couldn't go with him to get his anaesthetic not sure if that was due to covid or general rules though

That is the thing I'm most worried about me not being able to go with him and just sitting and waiting for it to be finished my anxiety will be through the roof it gives me anxiety thinking off it now did you cry I most probably will x

Thankyou so much for your thread attachment I am so glad you gave me this I did have a read through and it did give me clarity that this is so normal and actually it's quite common it's just the person below you has said now about not being able to go down with her boy for the anesthesia and the nurses just took him that's knocked me of now was this something you was able to do?

Thankyou for enlightening me to this I will most definitely ask about the risks of testicular cancer an if it would be best to just get rid of it altogether x

Thankyou so much just a quick question as someone has said that they couldn't go down with their boy for his anesthesia and that the nurses just took him was that something due to covid or will I still not be allowed to do that? X

I remember reading a lot about it a few years ago when we had a suspected one in the family, (which turned out to be a retractile one without need for treatment).

I think the outcome depends on where the undescended testicle is. If it's in the groin, it's simple to place it properly and there's a 90% chance of no further problems. If it's still up in the inguinal canal, they go after it with a laporoscope and there's a possibility it might have started to be reabsorbed by the body, in which case they will remove what's left to reduce the risk of cancer in future.

Doctors recommend being extra vigilant for the slightly increased risk of testicular cancer in future, which is easy to treat if spotted early.

Going with baby to the operating suite is usual I think, but I guess covid stopped it for a while.

I hope all goes well for you and your little one. It's very upsetting to think of surgery on a baby. They are so soft and vulnerable. Fortunately, babies usually heal well and they don't remember things later.

It really needs doing sooner rather than later. DH had both undescended and were in his abdomen. Unfortunately his first surgery wasn't until he was about 3 and it had to be done again when he was about 7. He's 100% infertile and we can't have children. This was never discussed with his parents as a risk for the future and we wasted years of our 30s TTC and it's resulted in us losing the opportunity to try IVF or ICSI and we're now childless in our 40s.

In terms of the surgery, you'll need to ask your hospital about what they'll let you do as most of them seem to have different rules post-Covid.

@honeyy123 Morning lovely! So unlike PP I was allowed to go with my son for his anaesthesia - he's had 2 surgeries now so like in my thread, the first one was gas and air given in the operating theatre, and I was there holding his hand until he'd gone 'under'. The second time we were in a little side room and I held him sitting in my arms facing me so he couldn't see them poking his hand, but they got the vein that time and he went out cold sitting on me and then the nurse picked him up and took him into the operating room without me.

Full disclosure I cried both times! It's emotional leaving them and they look so vulnerable when they are all floppy... But the team took brilliant care of him both times and aren't we lucky to have care on the NHS and no massive bills to pay?! So I had my cry, and then I focused on what he'd need when I'd see him again, and tried to stay busy... In your shoes I'd talk to the team when you get the chance to put your mind at ease. You can't stay with him for the surgery but I was able to stay for the anaesthetic both times. Wish you all the best.

@PinkFootstool I'm so sorry to hear your story, thank you for sharing My son has had surgery on both sides, although his testes were both categorised as mal-descended rather than undescended, i.e. they'd both got very close to the scrotum. I think that makes total infertility less likely for my son but we have planned to pay privately for a semen analysis for him when he's 17-18 (if he's happy to have one done). If we do this and he does turn out to have issues then at least he knows and we can deal with it. I think it's a shame that boys who've had childhood testicular surgery don't get this as standard aftercare on the NHS.

My son is due to have his op in the next couple of weeks, we've been waiting for a date since January and I'm very anxious for him to have it done now as he's almost 2. For the hospital we are with I am allowed to be with him while he has his anesthetic and then I leave after he's asleep. The hardest thing is going to be stopping him from climbing and wrestling with his sister during recovery as there's a risk of it popping back out!

@honeyy123 yes of course you can go to the anaesthetic room. Even during covid we still allowed that. I wonder why your friend want allowed, it seems odd.

Parents often cry when they leave their children. We are used it it. (Still feel really awkward when dads cry though!!) they'll probably send you for a walk and a coffee.

My son had this and had an op just before his second birthday. All good now :)

My son had this op when he was about one and a half. His testicle hadn't formed properly and was undescended and so they removed it and sewed the other one into place to prevent it getting twisted in future. I carried him down to the anaesthetic room myself and held him whilst they gave him gas and air until he was asleep. Walking away and leaving him there was hard and I did cry but the nurses were lovely. While he was in, my husband sat and ate his breakfast whilst reading a newspaper and I just sat stressing for an hour. When he came out they came and fetched me quite quickly and apart from a little cry he was absolutely fine. He did have some bruising but it didn't bother him at all. The only sign of it now is you can just about see the tiny scars in each side from the keyhole surgery. I am a very anxious person and didn't enjoy the process but he was honestly absolutely fine.

My son had this operation 6 1/2 years ago.

His was picked up by the GP at his newborn check, and he had the op when he was 7 months old.

About a week or so before a nurse rang me and explained the whole procedure. He was lovely and said this is like bread and butter to them; they do them all the time and it's a pretty straightforward procedure. But he understood that it's not bread and butter for the parents and it's completely understandable to be worried about your little one. He told me to just take one step at a time - focus on getting to the hospital, then on getting to surgery etc.

On the day we drove at the crack of dawn to our nearest children's hospital. The order of outpatients surgery was based on age so DS should have been first. But there had been an emergency overnight and some equipment now needed to be sterilised, so we were pushed to last. This was the worst part because DS was nil-by-mouth and was starving by the time he went down to theatre. I felt so bad about all the crying, but there was nothing I could do by the end!

I went into the anaesthetic room with him and DH waited outside. I sat him on my knee and they played with a toy to distract him, then held a mask near his mouth until he fell asleep. I cuddled him the whole time - in fact so much I had to be reminded not to get too close in case I breathed it in myself (I did feel a bit woozy when I stood up!)

We had a coffee and then went back up to the ward. The ward staff were great, told us as soon as he was out and in recovery.

He was awake when he was brought back up to the ward. And I did feel guilty he would have come round surrounded by strangers but he'd obviously been well cared for and I reassured myself he wouldn't remember it.

Because he was last the surgeon came with him and explained what they had found.

DS was very very upset when he came back on the ward though. I actually thought he was struggling to breathe but it's just because he'd cried so hard he'd got into a state and couldn't catch his breath back. As soon as he was given painkillers he calmed down and was able to feed and then he was fine. We went home only a few hours after his surgery.

Recovery was quick and easy. He had a check up locally about a year later. And just a few weeks ago I had a chat with him about it - he's 7 now so needs to know he should be extra careful when doing some activities.

Completely understandable that you'd be upset - I'm sure I cried! I knew logically that it was common and straightforward and that DS would be absolutely fine, but it's not so easy to think logically when it's your baby!

Hi OP, sorry only seeing your question again now. I am not sure why I wasn't allowed down with him, I am presuming it was a covid thing seeing as no one else has had that experience. It was very well handled by the staff though and I felt very reassured by them if that helps. But I would just ask how that part works and see how your hospital deals with it. I had been told in advance so knew what to expect. I was a bit teary but as I had mentally prepared it was fine, I just went and had coffee and then the surgeon phoned me less than half an hour later it was very quick.

Hello sorry I know this over 6 months old but just wondering if your son did have surgery how long was the wait time on Nhs? My son is 2.5 and we had to go private consultation for £200 due to wait on initial consultation on nhs list. No way can we afford the surgery required to stitch his right testes down. His inguinal hernia op caused the right testes to stay in the groin.

My son had his orchidopexy last year, he was finally referred age 1 and then got surgery for when he was 18 months, it got cancelled 3 times and rescheduled (due to the surgeons schedule not us!) and he finally had it done 2 days before his 2nd birthday. Healed really well and the scar has almost faded now. He had his checkup and has been discharged now

Thank you @fishstiks for replying :) That sounds like a really long wait, my son will be 3 in June and the paed urologist who we saw privately, really tried to push to go private as the Nhs waiting list is a year but it is unaffordable for us to go private.

Can you feel both testicles when he’s in a warm bath??

it was thought that my sons testicles was undecended when he was around 3.5years as a couple of GP’S wasn’t able to locate them ( appointment was due to the scrotum being tight and sore ) and was referred but as I was able to locate both of them when in a warm bath it didn’t require any treatment. They eventually stayed in the correct place around the age of 5/6 years.

Hello @HelloNeighbour2021 Thank you for replying. We panicked and booked a private consult yesterday and the urologist could feel both. One in the groin, one that moved down to scrotum easily. They want to operate on the one in the groin. I have put him in a warm bath and can feel the one in the scrotum come down not the other. I am just worried about leaving it too long and hear horrible stories of it ‘dying’ outside the scrotum due to the warm climate. I really would like to leave it to nature and hope it drops itself but as he had the inguinal hernia op on that side it feels like it was not done correctly hence why the testes is stuck in the groin, this is what the private consult implied.

Can I please ask was your son’s testes in his groin? And did it then move to scrotum in warm bath from groin area? Thank you

Hi, sorry to jump in but we’ve just been told our son won’t be seen until the end of the year due to the waiting list on the NHS. We’re considering private but trying to find out the likely cost of the surgery for one undecended testicle. Did the initial consultation give you any sort of indication of price bracket? I know it will vary depending on each surgeon etc. TIA

Hello @Pears32 the private consultant that we saw gave us a cost of £3800 for one undescended testes stuck in the groin on the right side, ours is likely caused by an unsuccessful inguinal hernia op done when he was 5 weeks old. He is now 2.7. We are also on waiting list. Where are you based in the country? We are in West Yorkshire and this consultant is very well known paed urologist.