The value of thermography and of the Doppler ultrasound in varicocele diagnosis.

The role of varicocele in male infertility is known. Among infertile patients that look for treatment, approximately 30% suffer from varicocele. The demonstration of the existence of subclinical varicoceles, that is, those that are not detectable through clinical examination, that are responsible for alterations in the spermogram, lead to the development of diagnostic methods of greater sensitivity. In the present study, the results obtained in eighty-eight (88) patients were analyzed with a view to confirming and comparing the sensitivity and efficiency of the Doppler ultrasound and of thermography in the detection of subclinical varicoceles. Thermography revealed itself as more sensitive, allowing the diagnosis of 40.9% of subclinical varicoceles.