Ann Clin Diabetes Endocrinol | Volume 3, Issue 1 | Research Article | Open Access
Etoa Etoga MC1*, Ndam Ngambou NS2, Boli Ongmeb A3, Mendane F4, Mbango-Ekouta N1, Ntsama JAM5,6, Dehayem M3 and Sobngwi E3,7
1Department of Clinical Sciences, University of Douala, Cameroon 2Endocrinology Unit, General Hospital of Yaoundé, Cameroon 3Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases Unit, Yaoundé Central Hospital, Cameroon 4Internal Medicine Unit, Centre Hospitalier d’Essos, Cameroon 5Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, University of Yaoundé, Cameroon 6Hospital Center for Research and Application in Endoscopic Surgery and Human Reproduction, Cameroon 7Department of Internal Medicine and Specialties, University of Yaoundé, Cameroon
*Correspondance to: Etoa Etoga MC
Fulltext PDFBackground: Testicular volume is a good marker of sertoli cell count, which correlates with male fertility. The orchidometer is a tool for measuring testicular volume. But it is not widely used in our infertility clinics. Our objective was to investigate the agreement between the measurement of testicular volume by the orchidometer and that obtained by testicular ultrasound in infertile men with hypogonadism and to correlate it with the level of inhibin B. Materials and Methods: We carried out a descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study in 3 reference hospitals in Cameroon. We proceeded with consecutive sampling. We included all consenting patients followed up or consulting in the host department for non-obstructive infertility. Patients with bilateral cryptorchidism were excluded. Testicular volume was measured with an orchidometer and ultrasound and then compared. Following this, a blood sample was taken for measurement of serum inhibin B levels. Results: Twenty-six patients with hypogonadism were examined. They were aged between 18 and 49 years with a mean age of 32.23 ± 10.35 years. We examined 49 testes. The average testicular volume found on the orchidometer was 6.13 ± 7.70 ml. On testicular ultrasound, we found an average testicular volume of 5.60 +/- 7 ml. There was an almost perfect agreement between the testicular volume on the orchidometer and that found on the ultrasound (kappa =0.81; p<0.001). There was also a correlation between the level of inhibin B and testicular volume measured by both the orchidometer (r=0.67; p=0.03) and scrotal ultrasound (r=0.60; p=0.04). Conclusion: The evaluation of the markers of the Sertoli cell function by 3 methods that was clinical, ultrasound and biochemical methods, showed a perfect agreement between them. This confirms the validity and reliability of the Prader’s orchidometer in the evaluation of testicular growth in infertile men.
Etoa Etoga MC, Ndam Ngambou NS, Boli Ongmeb A, Mendane F, Mbango-Ekouta N, Ntsama JAM, et a. Usefulness of Prader’s Orchidometer and Correlation with Inhibin B Level, In the Evaluation of Infertile Male with Hypogonadism Followed in a Low Resource Setting. Ann Clin Diabetes Endocrinol. 2020; 3(1):1015.