Faculty Bibliography

We report on a case of juvenile granulosa cell tumor of the testicle in a neonate, a rare testicular tumor in children. No genital ambiguity, anatomic abnormalities, nor sex chromosome aneuploidy was noted in this patient. In our case, despite positive staining for alpha-fetoprotein which is most consistent with yolk sac tumors, all clinical, gross anatomic, histologic, and other immunohistologic characteristics of the tumor remained consistent with the diagnosis of juvenile granulosa cell tumor. The alpha-fetoprotein positivity of the tumor remains unexplained.

The diagnosis and management of adolescent urinary tract infection (UTI) share some of the clinical features seen in infections of the young and old. Whereas most infections in the young patient demand an extensive radiologic work-up, the teenager with a UTI is not so straightforward. The clinician must balance being too aggressive with being too conservative in the diagnosis and management of these patients. UTIs occur most frequently among adolescent females and are usually uncomplicated and not associated with underlying anatomic abnormalities. Smaller numbers of adolescent males suffer from UTIs, and the need to search for underlying abnormalities is not clear. Adolescent UTI is associated with nascent sexual activity and is also more common in voiding/elimination syndromes. Future studies examining UTI, specifically in the adolescent age group, will help provide clinicians with a more focused algorithm in the diagnosis and management of adolescent UTIs.

Teratomas are tumors of germ-cell origin, composed of tissues derived from all three germinal layers: ectoderm, endoderm, and mesoderm. Most teratomas have been reported to arise at sites that are midline or paraxial, with the penis being an unusual location for this tumor. The treatment for most pure teratomas is surgical resection. We report a case of primary teratoma of the penis in a 3-month-old child. This is the second reported case of a primary teratoma of the penis and the first in a child.

OBJECTIVE:To provide an insight into the 'learning curve' of fellowship-trained paediatric urologists associated with hypospadias repair, as hypospadias surgery is one of the most common yet difficult procedures used by the paediatric urologist. PATIENTS AND METHODS/METHODS:Prospective data were collected on 231 consecutive hypospadias operations performed by one paediatric urologist (M.H.) over a 5-year period, beginning with his first year after completing his fellowship. All patients were having their first surgery and none had a staged repair. Fistula formation was used as a surrogate for the complication rate, as it is an objective measurable outcome that is easily identified with little interobserver or parental/physician variability. The follow-up included several visits in the 15 months after repair, during which virtually all complications could be identified and addressed. RESULTS:The operative results improved throughout the 5 years of observation; there was a statistically significant decline in the fistula rate in each year of observation (P < 0.001; Kruskal-Wallis exact test for ranked groups). The absolute reduction in fistula rates between the first 2 and the last 2 years was 12.7% (P < 0.02; chi squared). CONCLUSIONS:The science and surgery of hypospadiology is mostly and correctly delegated to the paediatric urologist. Even in the hands of a fellowship-trained paediatric urologist, a successful repair, as measured by complication rate, statistically improves with time and experience.