Microvascular testicular blood flow as evaluated by laser Doppler flowmetry after the surgical induction of varicocele

This study was conducted to evaluate the changes in microvascular testicula r blood now (microvascular TBF). which may be associated with varicocele. T he pathology was developed through partial ligation of left renal vein in 4 groups of rats. Controls of each group underwent sham surgery, It was obse rved that microvascular TBF dropped and its vasomotion became inhibited onc e the left renal vein was partially ligated as studied by laser Doppler flo wmetry (LDF). Four to five minutes rarer, blood flow rose to the pretreatme nt level and that of controls. Vasomotion reappeared with a uniform frequen cy and amplitude. At different periods of varicocele bearing (1, 3, 6, and 14 weeks) microvascular TBF was reevaluated Vasomotion appeared intact with out any abnormalities in the 4 groups. To examine the response of testicula r microvasculature after surgical creation of the varicocele to pharmacolog ical stimulation another group of animals received human chorionic gonadotr opin (hCG) treatment 6 weeks after varicocele creation. Vasomotion was inhi bited in these animals. In conclusion, LDF is a suitable tool to evaluate m icrovascular TBF in vivo. It can detect acute changes in blood flow that ma y happen at surgical induction of varicocele. In addition, the vasculature of the testis with a surgically induced varicocele can still respond to hCG stimulation.