Phani Chakravarty Mutnuru1 , Gadikota Suneel Kumar
BACKGROUND Testicular torsion is one of many possible causes of acute scrotal pain, and is due to twisting of the spermatic cord which can result in strangulation of blood flow to and from the testicle. It most commonly affects boys and young adults. Testicular salvage rates are high if early intervention is done. Doppler sonography plays an important role in the diagnosis of torsion, both in complete, and partial variants. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of Doppler sonography in the evaluation of testicular torsion, both in complete and partial types. METHODS Doppler sonography was done in 42 patients using linear broadband phased array transducer (7 - 12 MHz) on an E-Saote MyLab 60 ultrasound colour Doppler system. First, gray scale ultrasonography of contents of entire scrotal sac was done. The size and echogenicity of bilateral testis and epididymis along with twisting of spermatic cord, reactive hydrocoele, and scrotal sac thickening were recorded. Later, Doppler study was performed to assess intratesticular flow along with vascularity in rest of scrotal sac. RESULTS The age group ranged from 4 to 36 years with the mean age of 12.5 years. Most of the patients reported to emergency department between 6 - 12 hrs. after onset of symptoms. Out of 42 patients, 38 patients were diagnosed as complete torsion and 04 patients were diagnosed as partial torsion. CONCLUSIONS Doppler sonography is the gold standard for the evaluation of torsion of testis and helps in accurate diagnosis.
