Hello Mamas...a couple months back I took my son in for a well visit where his pedi told be that one of his testicles had not dropped...she told me that we should come back in a couple months for a recheck and if it was not dropped yet that she would refer us to a specialist for a consult. I of course had to come home and google and saw that in most cases this requires surgery to fix. Well Monday is his appt and I can tell it has not dropped yet which gives me a horrible feeling in my stomach about this visit. Has anyone else experienced this before?? Thanks in advance!!
**He is 14 months**
Thanks Mamas SO MUCH! Alot of people keep telling me it could be worse ect and trust me I know that but when its your baby even the most minor of things will cause you to lost sleep. I will let everyone know how the appt goes on Monday :)
ditto what most of the moms said here. The one addition, my son also had to have a small hernia fixed in his pelvic floor where it hadn't quite closed up.
It was in and out and he was great. The anesthesia though, was hard for him waking up, etc. other than that, great. Now 7 and no problems:)
My nephew is 20 months and is scheduled for surgery for the same thing in June. He was born with one testicle and the ped told my sister that if it did not drop by 12 months of age, he would need to be referred to a specialist. My sister and BIL took their baby a month ago to the specialist and the doctor said that the only way to see if he has a testicle is to do the surgery. My sister inquired about an ultrasound but the doctor said it would not be feasible because of visibility issues and the age of the child would make it difficult anyway. My nephew has a hernia and there is something else they need to do to the other testicle for symmetry purposes. Not sure of all the technical stuff but this is all that I know. My nephew will be 2 in July and the doctor said it's best to do it shortly after the child turns 12 months but way before they turn 2. The longer you put it off, if there even is testicle to bring down, the higher the risk for testicular cancer later in life. Don't be afraid, just make sure you get a good referral from your ped.
This is fairly common, believe it or not. I know it's scary, but you should keep the appointment and see what the specialist has to say.
I have friends whose son's testicle still hadn't dropped by the time he was in kindergarten. It was there....just hadn't dropped.
He had the procedure and sailed right through it. We were very close and I have taken care of him many times. We went to see him and take him a little get well gift when he got home and he dropped his pants to show me that he was all better now.
I can't comment on when the best time to do the procedure would be, that's for the specialist to say, but I know that the little boy I'm speaking of did just great. Of course, he was old enough to understand everything that was going on.
Hang in there. Try not to be upset about the appointment, that might scare your little one. You really need to know what your options are.
Best wishes.
hi mama - deep breath.
My son's testicles never made there way down. We went to a specialist when he was 12 months old (a urologist) anf=d he had to have surgery. If the y don't come down on their own they need surgery, there's nothing you can do. The testi will basically ":cook" if not brought down and can cause sterility.
Anyhoo...my boy went to Children's Hospital, had day surgery, and was home by late afternoon. He was grumpy the next day, but by the second day was his normal self. It was a bit tough to keep him off of his toys, but he healed great and we haven't had any issues since the (he's 5 now).
It's a fairly common issue and an easy surgery. Your son will be fine.
L.
My sons' second testicle didn't descend until he was 19 months, and my nephews did when he was 2.5. I remember when my nephew came running out of the bathroom shouting "I have 2 balls!! YIPPEE!!"
My pedi tried to scare us into going to a urologist too. We went (because we were first time parents and whenever a medical professional says "jump" you say "HOW HIGH!?"). The urologist just told us that it will descend in it's own time frame. It's very common for babies to be born with an undescended testicle, I really wouldn't worry about it until he was 5 years or older
My sons one testicle had not dropped by 4, so we took him in, and they found it had turned on the cord, cutting off the blood supply and unfortunately had died. this probably happened while he was in the womb.
They removed it, and he has one fully functional testicle. This is pretty rare, mostly they are just stuck up there.
My son had the same issue and had the surgery when he was about 2. I remember feeling scared about it too. He did fantastic and even the recovery wasn't so bad. The worst part about it for us was driving home from the hospital he threw up on me in the back seat :)
How old is your son?
As the others say, go see the specialist. My own son had to see a specialist several times during his first year of life for a related problem. It turns out that both of his testicles descended on their own. But, I have a friend whose son had to have surgery. It turns out though that his one testicle "suffocated" and so the surgery was just to clean it all out and close up the hole. But, he did have the one surviving testicle and so he is not sterile. I think the doctor can answer al of your questions.
Good luck!
L.
This must be fairly common, because it happened to the sons of TWO of my close friends! They both had surgery, right about at your son's age, and did great. They loved their doctor, too - I believe his name is Dr. Pinto. Another one of my friends also sees him for her daughter's urinary tract issues. I can get more info on him if you want.
Good luck! I can only imagine how stressful this is, but I'm sure everything will work out fine. Hang in there.
