Accuracy of ultrasound in pediatric undescended testes

Background: The undescended testis represents a common condition affecting male infants with significant clinical implications such as infertility and testicular malignancy. There is controversy as to the diagnosis when a clinical examination fails to identify a testis. Objective: Investigate the value of ultrasound in the diagnosis of undescended testis, and evaluate the correlation between the preoperative ultrasonographic data and operative findings. Material and method: Thirty-nine boys (age: 3months -12 years) with undescended testes were examined between January 2003 and December 2007. All the boys had undergone a sonogram performed for localizing the undescended testes. Only 20 boys were sent for inguinal exploration, or other surgical procedures for localizing the undescended testes. We calculated specificity, sensitivity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and the accuracy of ultrasonographic diagnosis in boys with undescended testes. Results: Twenty-nine undescended testes were included in this study. Ultrasonography had a sensitivity of 82%, a specificity of 0%, PPV of 96%, NPV of 0%, and accuracy of 79% in the diagnosis of the undescended testis. Conclusions: The sensitivity and specificity including NPV of uetrasound had the unsatisfactory outcomes.