Lack of carbachol response indicates the absence of cholinergic receptors in sacs associated with undescended testis.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: The mechanism of testicular descent remains controversial. The processus vaginalis (PV) contains smooth muscle and should have contractile activity that may contribute to descent. This study was designed to evaluate the smooth muscle of PVs associated with incomplete obliteration for spontaneous activities and responses to various stimuli, to determine if differences exist according to sex, diagnostic source, or location of the testis.

MATERIALS

Peritoneal samples (n = 4); sacs from girls (n = 8) and boys with inguinal hernia (n = 12); and sacs from boys with hydrocele (n = 3), hydrocele of the cord (n = 2), or undescended testis (n = 7) were used for the current study. Tissues were attached to the isometric force displacement transducer in an organ bath containing mammalian Ringer's solution at 37 degrees C. Spontaneous mechanical activity and contractile responses of tissues to the electrical field stimulation, phenylephrine, carbachol, and serotonin were recorded. The values obtained from boys and girls with inguinal hernia and from boys with either undescended or descended testis were compared through Fisher's Exact test.

RESULTS

There were no statistically significant differences in patient age between groups. Among the parameters studied, only the carbachol response of the sacs associated with undescended testis showed a significant difference compared with the others (P = .001). None of the sacs associated with undescended testis responded to carbachol, whereas all of the sacs from boys and girls with inguinal hernia responded to carbachol.

CONCLUSIONS

Lack of carbachol response suggests the absence of cholinergic receptors within the sacs associated with undescended testis. The lack of cholinergic receptors may play a role in the failure of the process of testicular descent by hindering either PV elongation into the scrotum or a possible propulsive activity of the PV on the testis.