Introduction: Varicoceles are present in about 15% of the male population. The treatment is surgical and internationally there has been an increase in the use of a subinguinal microsurgical approach in which the veins of the spermatic cord are ligated. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the results of the first microsurgical varicocelectomies performed in Denmark.
Material and methods: The medical records of boys and men who underwent microsurgical varicocelectomy between 1 February 1999 and 1 June 2007 at Rigshospitalet, Gentofte Hospital and Herlev Hospital, were reviewed.
Results: A total of 132 patients were included in the study. Ten recurrences (8%) and ten complications (8%) were found (one lesion of the vas deferens, six haematomas, two hydroceles and one patient with haematoma/infection). Following surgery, two patients underwent orchiectomy due to a lack of blood flow and sustained pain from the scrotum one year after the operation, respectively. When pain was the indication for surgery, resolution of this symptom was seen in 69 of 77 patients (90%). In one patient, the pain increased. After the implementation of a structured surgery schedule and after assigning the procedure to a single surgeon only, the number of recurrences and complications for the last 47 operated patients decreased to 0% and 4%, respectively.
Conclusion: In trained hands microsurgical varicocelectomy was an effective method with few complications and recurrences.