# spermatocele in 3-year-old



## nsmomtobe

A few months ago, I noticed swelling in my son's scrotum. It didn't seem to be bothering him. He said it didn't hurt. I waited for the swelling to go down, but after a while I noticed that one of his testicles seemed larger than the other. So I took him to the doctor and he confirmed that there was a large mass on top of his testicle which made it appear 3x its usual size. The doctor said it was probably a hydrocele, which is common in newborn boys but usually resolves itself by the age of 1. He said when it doesn't resolve itself or when it develops after the age of 1, it may require surgery. We were sent for an ultrasound to determine the extent.

The ultrasound revealed that it is not a hydrocele apparently, but a spermatocele. I'm not sure what the difference is because I don't really know what a hydrocele is, but the spermatocele is an enlargement of the epididymus and apparently involves sperm formation(?!). My doctor said it was unusual for children to get them or at least he had never seen a child with one before. He has referred us to a pediatric urologist, who we will meet next week. My doctor indicated that given the unusual nature of my son's condition for his age, as well as the size of his spermatocele (3 cm, I think, when usually they are less than 1 cm in grown men!), surgery will be needed.

My own research on this condition suggests that surgery is unnecessary as long as it isn't causing pain. I'm not sure if my son's fertility will be affected but apparently surgery does not help with fertility. But then again, most of the info is about men! I have asked my son again whether it is bothering him and whether he wants it removed (so his testicles can be the same size again). He has answered an adamant "no" to both. So I told him we are going to talk to the doctor next week to make sure it is not going to cause problems in the future, but we won't do anything about it unless there is an imminent threat. He doesn't even want to see another doctor for it (he already saw the family doctor and ultrasound technician). He just wants everyone to leave it alone. I feel bad for putting him through this already and I am really worried about the possibility of surgery in the future. I don't want to put him through that unless it is absolutely necessary.

Does anyone know anything about this condition in kids?


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## lauren

I think your post might have been missed so I am giving it a gentle bump so it can get some attention!


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## nsmomtobe

I think the problem is that no one has heard of this condition in a 3-year-old. Epididymal cyst is another name for it. It is not serious and usually does not require intervention. In fact, according to my own research, it usually goes away on its own.

We had our consultation with the specialist today. He told me that the cyst would not impair fertility, but surgical treatment might. In any case, he reiterated that the condition wasn't serious, and there is no need to do anything about it now because it is not bothering my son. However, he wants to see us again in 6 months to monitor whether there is any change, particularly in size. (If it gets smaller, great! If it gets larger, surgery will be discussed--yikes! If it stays the same, I guess monitoring will continue.)

The doctor told DS that he would look again later, in a while--he was very vague about when exactly--and DS said, "Well actually, my mom and I are not going to be here later." (We had made plans to go out to a movie after the appointment.) The doctor laughed and said, "That's okay, I'll ask your mother to bring you back when it's time." DS managed to con the intern into giving him 2 popsicles instead of 1, so he didn't really care about the prospect of returning.

I am just updating this for posterity because I find it helpful to do searches of posts on this board and when people have questions like I do, I like to see updates.


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## morgank

I know this is an older post, but I'm so glad I found it! My 2 year old has the same thing, so we're going to the urologist. I didn't realize how rare it was in young kids until I tried researching it. Everything is on adult men 40-60 years old - ugh! Thanks for updating your post so I can see what we're in for  I hope everything's well with your little one!


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## nsmomtobe

I'm glad it helped, morgank! I tend to do searches on posts and then wonder how things turned out, so that's why I updated. But I should have updated again. By the time we went back for his check-up 6 months later, it had completely disappeared. The doctor said to keep an eye on it in case it swells up again.

DS said, "My ball keeps getting smaller. By the time I'm a grown-up, I will have no ball at all!" We had to reassure him that was not the case.


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## sandy111

Please dont go for surgery.it will effect everything as iam the vitim of it.if infections will arise means it will go all around the parts of the body.
if you want to go for surgery,Please ask your urologist everything before surgery


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