Etiology of acute scrotum in 100 boys with regard to age distribution.

A review of 100 boys less than 15 years old who were hospitalized for an acute scrotum revealed that the most common causes of the disorder were testicular torsion, including torsion of the spermatic cord (42 per cent) and torsion of the appendages (32 per cent). The remaining 26 per cent of the cases were owing to idiopathic scrotal edema (8 per cent), epididymitis and orchitis (6 per cent each), and incarcerated hernia and acute hematocele (3 per cent each). The age distribution of these children was biphasic, with the highest frequency in newborns (with exclusively extravaginal torsion) and in boys 13 years old, whereas in boys with appendiceal torsion the single peak frequency was at age 10 years. While idiopathic scrotal edema occurred in children less than 7 years old and orchitis in patients more than 12 years old, epididymitis was observed in young boys and those of pubertal age.