A prospective evaluation of scrotal ultrasonography in clinical practice.

Abstract

To prospectively evaluate scrotal ultrasonography (SUS) in patients presenting with scrotal symptoms and to make recommendations about use of SUS in clinical practice. Forty-eight men with scrotal symptoms were examined by a urologist and independently underwent SUS by one radiologist with no knowledge of the clinical diagnosis. The clinical and SUS diagnoses were compared and the effect on subsequent management recorded. The clinical and SUS diagnoses agreed in 35 men (73%) although SUS provided an additional diagnosis in half of these men. The SUS diagnosis differed in 13 men (27%) although the management was altered in only four patients. The clinical diagnosis is correct in most men with scrotal symptoms; the routine use of SUS is inappropriate and should be reserved for specific indications.