Purpose To compare the structure of the testis in fetuses with prune belly syndrome (PBS) to normal controls. Materials and Methods We studied 6 testes obtained from 3 fetuses with PBS and 14 testes from 7 male fetuses. The testicular specimens were cut into 5-μm thick sections and stained with hematoxylin and eosin (HE), to observe the seminiferous tubules; Weigert's solution to observe elastic fibers; and picrosirius red to observe collagen. The images were captured with an Olympus BX51 microscope and Olympus DP70 camera. The stereological analysis was done with the Image Pro and Image J programs. Means were statistically compared using the Mann–Whitney U test (p < 0.005). Results Quantitative analysis documented no differences (p = 0.4) in number of seminiferous tubules (ST) in PBS testes (mean = 8.87%, SD = 1.59), when compared to the control (mean = 11.4%, SD = 2.99) and no differences (p = 0.8) in diameter of ST in PBS testes (mean = 52.85 μm, SD = 1.58) when compared to the control group (mean = 53.17 μm, SD = 1.55), but we did observe a lower number (p = 0.0002) of Leydig cells in the PBS testes (mean = 67.03% and SD = 3.697) when compared to the control group (mean = 90.1% and SD = 2.986). Conclusions Our study showed a lower concentration of Leydig cells in the triad syndrome fetuses.

Background: The objective of this study is to analyze the incidence of congenital urogenital malformations in human fetuses with neural tube defects (NTDs). Methods: We studied 320 human fetuses (214 males and 106 female) ranged in age from 12 to 35 weeks post-conception (WPC). The fetuses were carefully dissected with the aid of a stereoscopic lens with 16/25× magnification. The abdomen and pelvis were opened to identify and expose the urogenital organs. We studied the incidence of renal, ureteral, bladder, urethral, testicular, epididymal, vas deferens, prostate and penile and uterine anomalies. The renal anomalies were divided into rotation, fusion, number and ascension. We observed the presence of seminalvesicle and ureteral duplication, bladderseptation, hypospadias and posterior urethral valve. Results: We observed 17 fetuses (5.31%) with NTDs ranged in age between 18 to 34 WPC, weighted between 170 and 2325 g, and had crownrump length between 13 and 34 cm. Of the 17 fetuses, 4 (23.4%) presented some kind of anomaly of the urogenital system. Renal anomalies were found in three fetuses (17.6%) and a duplication of the left ureter in one fetus (5.8%). We do not observe anomalies in genital organs in this sample. Conclusions: We concluded that the urogenital anomalies in human fetuses with neural tube defects are significant with an incidence superior a 20%. In this study we have not found severe urogenital anomaly that causes damage of the body function.

Objectives To confirm if a real inner descend of testis occurs, correlating the testicular position with fetal parameters and analyzing the position of the testes relative to the internal ring.Material and Methods Twenty nine human fetuses between 13 and 23 weeks post conception (WPC) were studied. The fetuses were carefully dissected with the aid of a stereoscopic lens with 16/25X magnification and testicular position observed. With the aid of a digital pachymeter the distance between the lower pole of the kidney and the upper extremity of the testis (DK-T) was measured to show the position of the testis. During the dissection we also indicated the position of the testes relative to the internal ring. Means were statistically compared using simple linear regression and the paired T-test.Results The 58 testes had abdominal position. The DK-T in the right side measured between 0.17 and 1.82cm (mean=0.79cm) and in the left side it was between 0.12 and 1.84cm (mean=0.87cm), without statistically differences (p=0.0557). The linear regression analysis indicated that DK-T in both sides correlated significantly and positively with fetal age. All fetuses with more than 20 WPC, heavier than 350g and with CRL over 22cm had a greater distance than the average DK-T. We xobserved that the 58 testis remains adjacent to the internal ring throughout the period studied.Conclusions The testes remains adjacent to the internal ring throughout the period studied, indicating that there is no real trans-abdominal testicular descent during the second gestational trimester.