[Epididymitis and fertility. Treatment results in acute unspecific epididymitis]

Spermiograms of 46 patients were examined 8 days, 4 weeks, 3 months, 6 months and 1 year after acute unilateral non-specific epididymitis. The treatment consisted in 24 cases besides antibiotic treatment with doxycycline in local infiltrations of the spermatic cord with 1% Scandicain solution. Primarily there was found an inhibiting effect on spermatogenesis. In more than 2/3 of the cases a varying oligoasthenospermia was shown 8 days after beginning of the infection. In the further course this disturbance of fertility improves; if local infiltration of the spermatic cord with 1% Scandicain solution is performed, the improvement is more evident. Still, there remain about 20% of the cases in which the fertility disturbance is so severe, that sterility results. One year after the beginning of the infection spermagglutinating antibodies could be shown only in 1 case. The seminal fluid fructose was controlled over 1 year following the beginning of infection and found to be normal in all cases.