Acute Testicular Torsion in Children: A Tertiary Hospital Experience in a Developing Country

Background: Testicular torsion is a urological emergency in which there is a race against time to salvage the testis. The aim of this study was to evaluate our experience in the management of children who presented with acute testicular torsion. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study of children aged 15 years and below who had surgery for acute testicular torsion between January 2013 and December 2017 at the pediatric surgery unit of a teaching hospital in Enugu, Nigeria. Results: Sixty-four children were managed during the study period. The ages of the patients ranged from 2 months to 14 years with a median of 6 years. The right testis was mostly affected and the mean duration from the onset of symptom to presentation was 4 hours. All the patients presented with testicular pain and half of the patients had a prior history of intermittent testicular pain. Four (6.3%) patients had a history of trauma precipitating the testicular torsion and 3 (4.7%) patients had undescended testis. Detorsion and Orchidopexy was the most performed surgical procedure and wound infection was the most common post-operative complication. There was no mortality. Conclusion: Testicular torsion is not uncommon in children and may be associated with testicular loss. The right testis is mostly involved in children. Prior history of intermittent testicular pain, trauma and undescended testis are important considerations. Prompt detorsion and orchidopexy remains the cornerstone of treatment.