WORLD JOURNAL OF ADVANCE
HEALTHCARE RESEARCH

Emeka Mgbe, Nneka Iloanusi*, Chinenye Mgbe, Enyereibe Ajare, Amaka Nnamani and Emmanuel Obikili

ABSTRACT

Background: There has been a rise in the incidence of subfertility in Nigeria with male causes alone culpable in about 42% in the south-east zone of the country. Obviously, the socio-cultural as well as economic impacts cannot be over-emphasized. Ultrasonography is a readily available, reproducible, non-invasive and cost-effective imaging modality that can fairly accurately evaluate the testes and the rest of the scrotum. Objective: To ascertain if testicular volume was a contributing factor in subfertile adult males when compared to fertile adult males. Methodology: This was a prospective, comparative study of ultrasonographic testicular findings of fertile and subfertile adult males in Enugu Nigeria. Recruited research participants were scanned using 5.0-7.5MHz linear transducer on a mobile “ALOKA” ultrasound machine. Results: Of the 130 subjects studied, the mean ages for normal and subfertile were 42.14years and 41.18 years respectively. The mean testicular volume was 15.53±5.37cm3 for fertile and 10.01±4.09cm3 for subfertile subjects. There was significant difference in the testicular volumes of fertile and subfertile subject (P =0.0001). There was positive correlation of testicular volumes with weight as well as BMI in the fertile (control) subjects (Pearson r= +0.32) while correlation was insignificant in the sub-fertile group (Pearson r= +0.09). Conclusion: Ultrasonographic evaluation of testis is invaluable in the assessment of male subfertility.

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