Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31274478›Full record

Observational studyAsian journal of andrology

Testicular ultrasound inhomogeneity is an informative parameter for fertility evaluation.

Giorgia Spaggiari, Antonio R M Granata, Daniele Santi

Abstract readObservational Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Observational study in Asian journal of andrology. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
18citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

18 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Guideline
  2. Trial
  3. Article
  4. Observational
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  6. Article
  7. Article
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  12. Review
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Observational
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Beyond the Basics: Best Practices in Scrotal Ultrasound for the Infertile Male.International braz j urol : official journal of the Brazilian Society of Urology
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Giorgia SpaggiariUnit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena 41126, Italy.
Antonio R M GranataUnit of Endocrinology, Department of Medical Specialties, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria of Modena, Ospedale Civile of Baggiovara, Modena 41126, Italy.
Daniele SantiUnit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena 41126, Italy.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Testicular volume (TV) is proposed to be a positive predictor of male fertility status, because of the relation known between the TV and the seminiferous tubule content. Independently of the measurement methodology, the role of TV and testicular ultrasound (US) assessments is still debated in andrological clinical practice. In this retrospective cohort study, we evaluated TV and testis US role in the diagnostic workup of andrological patients. All consecutive outpatients undergoing single-operator testis US (Modena, Italy) from March 2012 to March 2018 were enrolled, matching sonographic, hormonal, and seminal data. A total of 302 men were referred and evaluated for gynecomastia, suspected hypogonadism, couple infertility (CI), or sexual dysfunction. In the hypogonadal group, TV was lower compared to that in other groups (P < 0.001), and a significant, direct correlation between TV and testosterone level was observed in nonandrogen-treated patients (R = 0.911, P < 0.001), suggesting that testicular size could be related to the testosterone-secreting compartment. In the CI group, normozoospermic patients showed higher TV compared to men with impaired semen quality (P = 0.003) and azoospermia (P = 0.003). However, TV was not able to discriminate between patients presenting normal and altered semen quality. On the contrary, testis US inhomogeneity was more frequent in patients with impaired sperm quality (55.0%; P = 0.007) and azoospermia (40.0%; P = 0.012), compared to patients with normozoospermia (5%), identifying thereby the sonographic pattern as an informative parameter of the fertility status. Therefore, in the CI workup, US evaluation seems to be more informative than the TV assessment alone.

Indexed as

Semen AnalysisAdultAzoospermiaCohort StudiesGynecomastiaHumansHypogonadismInfertilityMaleMiddle AgedOrgan SizeRetrospective StudiesSexual Dysfunction, PhysiologicalTestisTestosteroneUltrasonographyTestosteronemale hypogonadismmale infertilitytesticular diseasestestis

Identifiers

PMID31274478
PMCPMC7275802

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.