Clinical Characteristics and Surgical Outcomes in Adolescents and Adults with Varicocele

PURPOSE To compare clinical characteristics and surgical results in adolescents and adults with varicocele. MATERIALS AND METHODS We retrospectively analyzed the characteristics of 93 patients, 34 adolescents (mean age, 14.4±2.1 years) and 59 adults (mean age, 30.4±12.4 years), who underwent surgical repair of varicocele between 2006 and 2009. Median follow-up time in all patients was 18.7 months. The most bothersome symptoms, bilaterality, grades, surgical methods, artery-sparing rates, operation times, semen analysis, success rates, and recurrence-free period were compared between the two groups. RESULTS The overall success rate of surgical repair was 92.5%. The most bothersome symptoms were scrotal mass, pain, and hypotrophy in adolescents and pain, scrotal mass, infertility, and hypotrophy in adults (p=0.008). There were no significant between-group differences in bilaterality, grades, surgical methods, operation times, pre- or postoperative semen analyses, success rates, or recurrence-free periods. Patients who underwent artery-sparing surgery had higher recurrence rates than did those who underwent surgery that did not spare arteries. In adults, semen density increased significantly after surgery, from 35.6 million/ml to 49.6 million/ml (p=0.046). CONCLUSIONS There were no significant differences in clinical characteristics or surgical results between adolescents and adults with varicocele, except for the most bothersome symptoms. Semen density increased after surgery in both groups.