Ultrasound measurements of testicular volume: Comparing the three common formulas with the true testicular volume determined by water displacement

Objective: To determine the accuracy of various ultrasound formulas for measuring the testicular volume in humans by comparing the resultant measurements with the actual testicular volume. Subjects and methods: The testicular volume of 121 testes from 62 patients with prostate cancer (mean age 72.7 ...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: T.U. Mbaeri, J.C. Orakwe, A.M.E. Nwofor, C.K. Oranusi, O.O. Mbonu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SpringerOpen 2013-06-01
Series:African Journal of Urology
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1110570413000349
Description
Summary:Objective: To determine the accuracy of various ultrasound formulas for measuring the testicular volume in humans by comparing the resultant measurements with the actual testicular volume. Subjects and methods: The testicular volume of 121 testes from 62 patients with prostate cancer (mean age 72.7 ± 9.4) was measured using ultrasonography before therapeutic bilateral orchidectomy. The ultrasound measurements of the testicular volume were calculated using the following three formulas: (a) length (L) × width (W) × height (H) × 0.52; (b) L × W2 × 0.52 and (c) L × W × H × 0.71. The actual testicular volume was determined by water displacement of the testis. Results: The mean actual testicular volume was 10.6 ± 3.5 ml. A strong correlation was found between the actual testicular volume and the volume calculated by the three-ultrasound formulas (r = 0.853–0.871, p = 0.0001). The smallest mean difference from the actual testicular volume was observed with the formula L × W × H × 0.71, which underestimated the actual volume by 0.4 ml (3.9%). Conclusion: The results of this study show that ultrasonography and the formula L × W × H × 0.71 are the most accurate method for the calculation of the testicular volume.
ISSN:1110-5704