What Every Man Should Know About Testicle Health

Testicular diseases aren’t particularly common, but catching them early can make all the difference. While you don’t need to be overly worried about your testicle health, you should be vigilant about performing self-exams and watching for certain symptoms.

Here at Vascular & Interventional Associates in Crestview Hills, Kentucky, our team of expert providers helps men throughout northern Kentucky and in Cincinnati, Ohio, maintain their testicle health. On top of offering dedicated treatment for testicular conditions like male varicoceles, we also want to educate you about steps you can take at home. 

Here are three things every man should know about testicle health.

Regular self-exams are important

In addition to getting an annual physical, where your doctor checks your testicles, you should also perform a self-exam at home once a month. Roll your testicles in your hands to check for any irregularities like lumps or tenderness.  

By performing this self-exam monthly, you’ll get an idea of how your testicles normally feel, enabling you to identify any changes so you and your doctor can address them right away. This enables you to catch testicular cancer at an early stage, when it’s most treatable.

For more information about performing a self-exam, check out this guide from the Testicular Cancer Awareness Foundation. 

You can take steps to keep your testicles healthy

There are a few simple things you can do to avoid infection, injury, and other testicular complications. You can:

• Keep the area clean and dry to prevent infections
• Wear loose-fitting clothing to allow your testicles to temperature-regulate
• Use a condom when you have intercourse to prevent sexually transmitted infections

Make it a habit to practice these testicular health measures. 

Varicoceles are common and treatable

Roughly 15% of men develop varicoceles — enlarged veins in the testicles — at some point during their lives. In many cases, these irregular veins don’t cause any complications. However, some varicoceles can create symptoms such as:

• Infertility 
• Pain
• Abnormal testicle growth 
• Swelling

If you notice any of these changes in your testicles, come in to see our team at Vascular & Interventional Associates. We’re experts in a minimally invasive, highly effective varicoceles treatment called embolization.

This procedure allows us to access the affected vein through a very small incision. Then, we block it. At that point, your body redirects blood flow to normal veins in your testicles and the varicocele — and the associated symptoms — should go away. 

Testicle health is an important component of your overall health. To get answers to any questions you may have, for diagnosis of a potential varicocele, or for varicoceles treatment, call Vascular & Interventional Associates or request your appointment online today.