Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36043130›Full record

ArticleJournal of reproduction & infertility

Relationship of Clinical and Ultrasonographic Grading of Varicocele with Semen Analysis Profile and Testicular Volume.

Amin Abolhasani Foroughi, Manoochehr Dallaki, Seyed Ali Hosseini, Ali Ariafar

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In one paragraph

Article in Journal of reproduction & infertility. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
0.6field-weighted citation impact, top 33% of its field
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

4 citing papers in PubMed, 4 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
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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

4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Amin Abolhasani ForoughiMedical Imaging Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Manoochehr DallakiMedical Imaging Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Seyed Ali HosseiniStudent Research Committee, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Ali AriafarDepartment of Urology, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
Shiraz University of Medical Sciences · IR

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Varicoceles are a major cause of infertility. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship of the clinical and ultrasonographic grades of varicocele with the semen analysis profile and testicular volume among men undergoing scrotal ultrasonography. Methods: This cross-sectional analytical study involved 109 males undergoing scrotal ultrasonography for various indications in Shiraz, Iran, between January 2019 and January 2020. Varicoceles were graded with color Doppler ultrasonography (CDU) by an expert radiologist (Sarteschi's criteria) before an experienced urologist determined the clinical grade (Dubin and Amelar criteria) and requested further investigations. Next, the demographics, reasons for referral, testicular volumes, and semen analysis profiles across the different clinical/ultrasonographic grades were compared. Key statistical measures included Cohen's kappa coefficient, the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests, and Spearman correlation. Data were analyzed using SPSS v. 21 with p-values <0.05 indicating statistical significance. Results: Ultrasonographic grades 1 and 2 provided the highest correlation with subclinical cases, while ultrasonographic grades 3, 4, and 5 corresponded with clinical grades 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Further comparisons were made between subclinical and clinical cases, which were similar in terms of reason for referral, total testicular volume, testicular volume differential, and semen analysis profile. Notably, total testicular volumes below 30 Conclusion: The present study showed a relatively high correlation between varicocele grading based on clinical evaluation and CDU. However, the grades were similar in testicular volume parameters and semen analysis indices. Hence, decision-making should be guided by the infertility history, testicular atrophy, and abnormal semen analysis.

Indexed as

InfertilityMale urogenital diseasesUltrasonographyVaricocele

Identifiers

PMID36043130
PMCPMC9363911
OpenAlexW4220889154

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.