Todayโs path rounds are on ๐๐ซ๐ฒ๐ฉ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐๐ก๐ข๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฆ!
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
๐๐ซ๐ฒ๐ฉ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐๐ก๐ข๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ฆ is the most common disorder of sexual development in male animals. During development, the testicles are located near the kidneys, and as the animal develops, they are pulled downwards into the scrotum, their normal home. In cryptorchidism, one or both of the testicles doesnโt reach its final destination, and ends up somewhere in the abdomen!
๐๐ก๐จ ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
Any species can get this!
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
The descent of the testicles is actually very complex, and involves a lot of genes, hormones, and structural development. So an abnormality in any of these aspects, or even some environmental factors, can lead to development of cryptorchidism. That said, a hereditary component has been established in pretty much every species, and is believed to be the most common cause of this disorder. Therefore, cryptorchid animals should not be bred, to hopefully prevent future cryptorchids!
๐๐ก๐ฒ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฆ?
Generally it isnโt a huge issue having a testicle in the abdomen. However, it does predispose the animal to some potentially serious conditions! Cryptorchid testicles have an increased risk of developing tumours, particularly in dogs. They are also at a greater risk of ๐ญ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฎ๐ฅ๐๐ซ ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ๐ข๐จ๐ง (twisting of the spermatic cord compromising blood flow) which can cause ๐ง๐๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ (cell death) of the testicle and be a source of pretty serious inflammation!
Interestingly, cryptorchid testicles do not produce sperm! This is because the cells that complete ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐จ๐ ๐๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ข๐ฌ (sperm production) are very temperature sensitive, and the abdomen is just too warm for them to complete their normal functions. Cool!
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐ข๐๐ ๐ง๐จ๐ฌ๐๐?
This is usually pretty easy to diagnose: simply palpate the scrotum to see if you can feel two testicles! If you canโt, then thereโs a good chance that the animal is a cryptorchid. A word of warning however: some animal species are not born with their testes descended, so if you are dealing with one of those species, make sure the animal is an appropriate age before you diagnose it as a cryptorchid!
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐๐?
As mentioned before, these animals should not breed, so cryptorchidism is usually โtreatedโ by ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง (removal of the testicles). However, castrating a cryptorchid is a bit more complex than castrating normal animals, since you often have to open the abdomen to go searching for the missing testicle! Therefore, these castrations are usually a pretty intensive surgery, particularly for our large animal species like cattle and horses.
๐๐ก๐จ๐ญ๐จ๐ฌ
1-2) A normal sized testicle next to a cryptorchid testicle. Cryptorchid testicles are small because they arenโt able to develop properly in the high temperature of the abdomen!
3-5) Examples of intra-abdominal cryptorchid testicles! Note that they can be found very close to the kidneys.
๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐๐ฌ
Maxie, G. Jubb, Kennedy and Palmerโs Pathology of Domestic Animals, Volume 3. Sixth Edition.
Photos 1-2 ยฉ University of Calgary Diagnostic Services Unit.
Photos 3-5 ยฉ Noahโs Arkive contributors Crowell, Niyo, Loukopoulos licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
