Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0019270 (hernia)
 15,856 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Twelve immature male dogs underwent a left vasectomy (group A). An additional five underwent a sham operation (group B). Sixteen weeks after the surgery, the bilateral mean values for caudal epididymal sperm content, the percentage of motile spermatozoa, intratesticular testosterone concentration, and testicular secretion of androgen-binding protein (in vitro) were significantly lower in group A. The mean peripheral serum testosterone responses 3 hours after human chorionic gonadotropin stimulation (3,000 IU) were significantly lower in group A than in group B (6.3 ng/mL v 9.5 ng/mL). These findings indicate a bilateral deficiency in both Leydig and Sertoli cell secretory function in unilaterally vasectomized dogs, resulting in impaired bilateral spermatogenesis and sperm maturation. The authors suggest that unilateral injuries of the vas deferens during hernia operations in children may result in bilateral testicular dysfunction.
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PMID:Bilateral effect of unilateral vasectomy on testicular testosterone biosynthesis. 807 31

Three young Suffolk ram lambs had lesions which rendered them reproductively unsound. One had a unilateral scrotal hernia, detected by palpation, and two had sperm granulomas which were detected by trans-scrotal ultrasonography at 18 to 20 weeks of age, before they could be detected by palpation. Changes in the lesions were monitored ultrasonographically at two-week intervals with a 7.5 MHz linear array transducer. On the day of each examination, semen was collected from the rams with sperm granulomas by using an artificial vagina, and their libido was assessed. Semen could rarely be collected from the third ram. Comparisons were made with similar data obtained from two normal rams. When the rams were 20 to 21 months of age, they were vasectomised on the normal side, so that the influence of the lesions on semen composition and libido could be assessed, and semen was collected and evaluated until they were euthanised at approximately 24 months of age, when the genital system was examined for gross lesions. The sperm granulomas changed in size (one of them increased in size by about 30 times) and echotexture over the 19-month period of the study, whereas the scrotal hernia, which contained omental fat, remained fairly constant. The libido of the two rams with sperm granulomas was comparable with the two normal controls. The total mean (sem) number of sperm in the ejaculates were 1.11 (0.10) x 10(9) and 2.03 (0.17) x 10(9) sperm/ml in the affected rams and 4.11 x 10(9) sperm/ml in the normal rams over the same period; the differences were significant (P<0.05). After unilateral vasectomy, the ejaculates from these two rams contained small numbers of dead spermatozoa, mostly with degenerate heads. Postmortem examination confirmed the gross lesions identified ultrasonographically.
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PMID:Ultrasonography of spontaneous lesions of the genital system of three rams, and their influence on semen quality. 1066 55

The increase in male life expectancy has raised issues concerning the impact of aging on the endocrine system and male fertility. This review focuses on the relationship of spermatogenesis to changes with age in androgen production and testicular morphology, the influence of age on semen parameters and chromosomal quality, and the impact of paternal age and pregnancy outcome. While age-related endocrine changes are well documented, those concerning semen parameters and consequent fertility are based on cross-sectional studies alone. Nevertheless, characteristic age-related morphological testicular alternations have been described, such as decreased numbers of Leydig cells paralleling decreased testosterone production, arteriosclerotic lesions, thickening and hernia-like protrusions of the basal membrane of the seminiferi tubules, and fibrotic thickening of the tunica albuginea. Surprisingly, these alterations do not lead to significant differences in sperm-morphology, time of spermatozoa development or sperm function between young and elderly males. Reports on decreased sperm motility, semen volume and changes in sperm count are contradictory. Although numerical chromosomal abnormalities of spermatozoa are not higher in aging males, an increase in structural aberrations can be observed. Consequently, children of elderly fathers show a 20% higher risk for autosomal dominant diseases, presumably due to increasing numbers of germ cell meioses and mitoses. Thus, the American Fertility Society recommends an age limit for semen donors of 50 years or less.
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PMID:Effects of aging on male fertility? 1097 77

Bilateral obstruction of the male reproductive tract is suspected in men with azoospermia, normal testicular volume and normal FSH. A testicular biopsy is required to differentiate between an obstruction and a testicular insufficiency. Unilateral or subtotal bilateral obstructions and epididymal dysfunction may cause severe oligozoospermia in men with a normal spermatogenesis. However, information on spermatogenesis in oligozoospermic men is lacking, since testicular biopsy is not routinely performed. Men with a sperm concentration of <1 x 10(6) spermatozoa/ml were investigated for possible partial obstruction by performing a testicular biopsy under local anaesthesia. Spermatogenesis was determined by the Johnsen scoring method. A testicular biopsy was performed in 78 men with severe oligozoospermia. The medical history showed male accessory gland infection in 12.8%, previous hernia repair in 14.1% and a history of cryptorchidism in 12.8%. A normal or slightly disturbed spermatogenesis (Johnsen score >8) was present in 39/78 (50%) of the men. Hernia repair occurred more often in men with normal spermatogenesis. A varicocele was predominantly seen in men with a disturbed spermatogenesis. FSH was significantly lower ( P<0.0001) in men with normal spermatogenesis. Subtotal obstruction of the male reproductive tract is a frequent cause of severe oligozoospermia in men with a normal testicular volume and a normal FSH. In other cases, an epididymal dysfunction might explain the oligozoospermia in men with a normal testicular biopsy score.
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PMID:Subtotal obstruction of the male reproductive tract. 1262 59