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Varicocele
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A varicocele is a problem with the veins that carry blood away from the testicle. As they leave, those veins form a network inside the scrotum, the pouch of skin that holds the testicles, and that network is called the pampiniform plexus. In a varicocele, the network gets wider than it should.
Why does it widen? The thinking is that instead of moving along, blood backs up in the internal spermatic vein, the main vein that carries blood out of the testicle, and the veins in the network gradually fill up and become congested. On the left side, that vein empties into the renal vein, the vein coming from the kidney, where the pressure is relatively high. Picture a bathroom sink that drains into a pipe that's already running full: the water goes down more slowly and pools behind. That's why varicoceles show up mostly on the left side.
So why does it matter? Because it's the cause doctors identify most often when a semen test comes back abnormal: there are fewer sperm, the cells that semen carries, and they move less and have abnormal shapes. That doesn't mean someone with a varicocele can't have children. Most men with a varicocele are fertile.
In brief
A varicocele is an abnormal dilation of the pampiniform plexus, the network of scrotal veins that drains each testicle.
Blood is thought to back up in the internal spermatic vein, engorging the veins. On the left, that vein drains into the relatively high-pressure renal vein, which can slow its outflow. That's why most varicoceles are on the left.
It is the most commonly identified cause of abnormal semen: low sperm counts and sperm that move less and are abnormally shaped. Still, most men who have one are fertile.
Sources (1)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingVaricocele, StatPearlsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
Updated