Category: Andrology
Andrology (andros, logos – “science about a man”), as a field of medical science, studies the anatomical and physiological characteristics of the male sexual sphere, diseases of the genital organs and the violation of sexual function in men; is engaged in their treatment, prevention, social and individual rehabilitation of patients. As an independent discipline, andrology has recently emerged from urology. According to WHO, the task of andrology is to maintain male reproductive health.
Andrology is an interdisciplinary science that integrates knowledge and achievements of urology, endocrinology, plastic surgery, sexopathology, venereology, microsurgery. The main medical problems of andrology are the issues of male infertility and contraception, androgen deficiency, sexual dysfunction in men, male aging, sexual infections, prostate disease, transsexualism and sex change.
The subject of andrology and the sphere of competence of the andrologist are malformations of male genitalia, traumatic, inflammatory and tumor lesions of the urethra, prostate, penis, scrotum organs, erectile dysfunction and ejaculation, sexual development, hypogonadism, male menopause and obesity. In the andrology, reconstructive and aesthetic genital surgery, reproductive andrology, oncoandrology, pediatric andrology are being developed.
Diagnosis in andrology includes examination and palpation examination of the external genitalia and prostate; laboratory analyzes of the secretion of the prostate and secretions from the urethra by the methods of microscopy, PCR and bacterosseum; study of ejaculate (spermogram, MAR-test); studies of the immune and hormonal status, biochemical and general clinical tests of urine and blood; Ultrasound examination of the scrotum and prostate with transrectal or transabdominal method, doppler diagnosis of the vessels of the scrotum, prostate and penis, cysto- and urethroscopy.
Various diseases of male genitalia, first of all, have a negative effect on reproductive and sexual functions, therefore, with a preventive goal, it is recommended 1-2 years for the andrologist to be treated men. Unscheduled consultation is required if there are problems with erection, decreased potency, premature ejaculation, pain in the groin, the appearance of suspicious (including bleeding) discharge from the urethra, itching, discomfort, burning with urination, pain during intercourse, discoloration of the ejaculate etc. Examination of a male from an andrologist (as well as a woman at a gynecologist) is necessary before planning conception or with reproductive failures.
By methods of treatment, andrology is divided into therapeutic (conservative) and surgical (operational). Therapeutic andrology uses medication courses (anti-inflammatory, immunocorrecting, antiviral, hormonal), instillations of the urethra / bladder, physiotherapy (electrostimulation, LED and laser radiation, magnetotherapy, color pulse therapy, ozone therapy, thermotherapy, manual and hand massage), psychotherapy and so on. .
In surgical andrology, low-traumatic techniques are used – endoscopic, radio wave, laser, cryological, which do not violate the integrity of the skin and minimize the percentage of complications. Rapid rates in andrology are developing a reconstructive and aesthetic direction of genital surgery, allowing to eliminate defects in the genital organs and to return to men the possibility of conducting a full sexual life. The most frequent operations in andrology are circumcision (circumcision) of the foreskin, surgeries with varicocele and hydrocele, frenum plastic surgery, interventions for cancer and adenoma of the prostate gland, male sterilization (vasectomy), penis enlargement and lengthening, falloprosthesis.