EFFECT OF HUMAN CHORIONIC-GONADOTROPIN BEFORE SPERMATIC VESSEL LIGATION IN THE PREPUBERTAL RAT TESTIS

After single stage Fowler-Stephens orchiopexy testicular atrophy is co mmon. Previous experimental study in the scrotal testis of the adult r at has shown that ligation of the internal spermatic artery often caus es focal testicular infarction or atrophy and exogenous human chorioni c gonadotropin increases testicular blood flow. We questioned whether division of the internal spermatic artery in the undescended rat testi s would also cause testicular injury and hypothesized that these chang es might be prevented by administering human chorionic gonadotropin be fore vessel ligation. Two groups of 20-day-old Sprague-Dawley male rat s were subjected to unilateral internal spermatic artery ligation. Gro up 1 (control) received no human chorionic gonadotropin, while group 2 received 10 IU human chorionic gonadotropin daily from days 3 to 17 o f life. At 3 months testicular blood flow was quantitated using (141)c erium radioactive microspheres. The results indicated that blood flow on the operated side was lower than on the nonoperated side but the ch ange was not statistically significant. Human chorionic gonadotropin h ad no effect on blood flow to the operated testes, Gross testicular we ights of operated versus nonoperated gonads were similar in rats that did and did not receive human chorionic gonadotropin. Pathological eva luation revealed normal histology in all testes. These results do not support the use of human chorionic gonadotropin preoperatively to stim ulate collateral testicular blood flow.