Higher than expected prevalence of congenital cryptorchidism in Lithuania: a study of 1204 boys at birth and 1 year follow-up

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Cryptorchidism at birth is one of the symptoms of testicular dysgenesis syndrome (TDS). The aim of the study was to detect prevalence of cryptorchidism in Lithuanian newborn boys. METHODS: A total of 1204 consecutively born boys were examined within the first days after birth in one regional hospital. Boys cryptorchid at birth were reexamined 1 year later. RESULTS: The prevalence of cryptorchidism at birth was 5.7% (69 cases). Cryptorchidism was associated with low birth weight (P<0.0001), preterm delivery (P<0.0001), small gestational weight (P=0.03) and other congenital abnormalities of genitalia (P=0.0001). No correlation between cryptorchidism at birth and maternal age, birth order or mode of delivery was demonstrated in this study, but paternal body mass index <20 kg/m² was found to be a significant risk factor (P=0.001). The prevalence of congenital cryptorchidism at 1 year of age was 1.4%. CONCLUSIONS: We detected lower frequency of cryptorchidism at birth in Lithuanian boys than in Danes (9.0%), but higher than in Finns (2.4%). We had expected the frequencies in Lithuania and Finland to be relatively similar because the other symptoms of TDS (incidence of testicular cancer and semen quality) are close in these countries.

congenital cryptorchidism, regional differences, spontaneous descent, testicular dysgenesis syndrome