Evaluation of children with inguinoscrotal ectopic adrenal tissues

Authors: FATİH OĞUZ, TURAN YILDIZ, ALİ BEYTUR, HALÜK SÖYLEMEZ, RAMAZAN ALTINTAŞ, EMİNE ŞAMDANCI, SAADET ALAN

Abstract: To evaluate 6 cases of inguinoscrotal ectopic adrenal nodules, which were detected in 2 hospitals. Materials and methods: A total of 296 male patients who had inguinoscrotal surgery between 2009 and 2011 were retrospectively evaluated. Bright yellow nodular lesions, resembling the adrenal tissue, were excised during surgery. Histopathologic examination of these samples was performed and the clinical data of the patients were evaluated. Results: Ectopic adrenal tissue was detected in 6 patients (2.02%). The mean age of the patients was 4.6 years (range: 3 months to 9 years) years. Ectopic adrenal nodules were localized in the spermatic cord, in the vicinity of the epididymis and appendix testis, on the epididymis, and on the tunica albuginea of an atrophic testis undergoing orchiectomy due to intraabdominal localization. Adrenal cortex cells were found in 5 patients, and both cortex and medullar cells were found in 1 patient. No malign transformation was detected. Hormonal, biochemical, hematologic, and urinary analyses did not yield any significant results. Conclusion: Inguinoscrotal ectopic adrenal tissues are incidentally detected lesions during surgical interventions. They are benign lesions associated with no significant symptoms. Nevertheless, it is considered to be of benefit to remove these tissues in order to perform histopathological evaluation for differential diagnosis.

Keywords: Ectopic adrenal tissue, inguinoscrotal surgery, ectopic adrenal medulla

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