Varicocele management for infertility and pain: A systematic review

Abstract

Despite being first described two thousand years ago, the varicocele remains a controversial multifaceted disease process with numerous biological consequences including infertility, hypogonadism, and chronic orchidalgia. The underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood and likely include hypoxia, oxidative stress, hyperthermia, anatomical aberrations, and genetics as primary components. Despite a high prevalence amongst asymptomatic fertile men, varicoceles paradoxically also represent the most common correctable cause for male infertility. In this systematic review we discuss the rich historical aspects of the varicocele and the contemporary data regarding its clinical manifestations. We performed a systematic literature review with the goal of comparing outcomes and complication rates of each of the major surgical approaches as they relate to infertility and pain. We performed a Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA)-compliant systematic literature review for manuscripts focused on varicocele and its biological consequences. We identified 112 studies suitable for qualitative analysis and included 56 of these for quantitative analysis, with an emphasis on infertility and chronic pain outcomes. Taken together, the clinical work to date suggests that the highest fertility rates and the lowest complication rates are associated with the microsurgical subinguinal surgical approach to varicocelectomy. In all, 26-40% of patients undergoing varicocelectomy will successfully achieve short-term spontaneous pregnancy, and up to 90% of all patients undergoing varicocelectomy for pain will have improvement and/or resolution of their symptoms. Taken together, the data support an ongoing role for varicocelectomy in both of these clinical arenas.