Orchitis – What it is, Causes, Symptoms and Treatments of this condition. Also, orchitis is inflammation of the testicles . It may also involve swelling, heavy pain and frequent infections . It is the second most common manifestation of mumps in adults. The inflammatory process may be involved epididymis (orchiepididymitis).
It may lead to rotting testicle , bilateral injuries, male infertility. Diagnosed with Orchitis examination by the urologist, in a doubtful situation is still performed ultrasound and diagnostic puncture.
This condition can be transmitted through STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) such as gonorrhea and chlamydia. Bacteria such as Escherichia coli, which cause kidney infections , are also causes of orchiepididymitis. Inflammatory orchiepididymitis can also be caused by local trauma.
What is Orchitis?
The orchitis is a painful inflammatory process involving the testicles and sometimes the epididymis, the body that is located on each testicle . Most often the infection occurs in both organs, and that’s why we call it orchiepididymitis.
When infection occurs only in the epididymis we call it epididymitis. This inflammation can occur in both humans and animals.
This infection may occur due to: viruses such as mumps ; sexually transmitted infections such as gonorrhea and chlamydia; bacteria, such as Escherichia coli; or scrotal trauma. We can observe two types of Orchitis : in acute form and in chronic form.
Causes of Orchitis:
It can be caused by many factors, such as bacteria, viruses, parasites, spirochetes, or due to trauma, chemical causes or being idiopathic (of unknown cause). One of the main causative factors of this condition is the mumps virus .
Therefore, people who have not previously been infected with the mumps virus should be vaccinated against it, as one in five men who have mumps develop some form of potentially sterilizing and impotent Orchitis .
Symptoms of Orchitis:
The Symptoms of orchitis may be:
Blood ejaculation;
Bloody urine;
Pain and swelling in the testicles ;
Testicular sweating;
There may be fever and malaise.
When mumps- related, these symptoms may appear on average 7 days after swelling of the face.
Orchitis Diagnosis:
The diagnosis depends on the health history and a well-done clinical examination that allows to rule out other differential diagnoses. As a complementary diagnosis, some tests may be performed, such as common urine exam, urine culture and scrotal Doppler ultrasound.
Orchitis Risk Factors:
The risk factors for this condition are:
Sex with a partner with some STD.
Personal history of STD.
History of infections and urinary tract or prostate.
History of medical procedures affecting the urinary tract, such as catheter insertion into the penis.
Sex without a condom.
Enlarged prostate, which increases the risk of infections and consequently of epididymitis.
Penis not circumcised or with anatomical abnormalities.
Orchid Treatments:
When the cause is viral, bacterial or fungal, treatment is by antibiotic therapy. Other important measures in the treatment of this condition include: rest, scrotum elevation, cold compresses, analgesia and anti-inflammatory drugs.
If the treatment is performed quickly, the condition may be reversed within a week, but the testicular volume may take up to 30 days to completely disappear.
