If a testicle has not descended on its own by the time a baby is 6 months old, he should be checked by a pediatric specialist and have treatment if the condition is confirmed. This usually involves surgically repositioning the testicle into the scrotum.
Treatment is necessary for several reasons:
Being up in the body means the undescended testicle is at a higher temperature than usual (testicles need to be below regular body temperature to produce sperm). The higher temperature may harm the testicle's development and its ability to make sperm in the future. This could possibly lead to infertility (the inability to father children).
An undescended testicle is more likely to form a tumor than a normally descended testicle.
The undescended testicle may be more at risk for injury or testicular torsion.
An asymmetrical or empty scrotum can cause a boy worry and embarrassment.
Sometimes boys with undescended testicles develop inguinal hernias.
If surgery is done, it's likely to be an orchiopexy (or-kee-oh-PEK-see). In this procedure, a small cut is made in the groin and the testicle is brought down into the scrotum, then fixed (or "pexed") in place. Doctors usually do this on an outpatient basis (with no overnight stay in the hospital), and most boys recover fully within a week.
Most doctors believe that boys who've had a single undescended testicle will have normal fertility and testicular function as adults, while those who've had two undescended testicles might be more likely to have reduced fertility.
Boys who've had undescended testicles should have regular follow-up appointments with a urologist to make sure that no problems develop.
All boys - even those whose testicles have properly descended - should learn how to do a testicular self-exam when they're teens so that they can find any lumps or bumps that might be early signs of medical problems.