Update After Scrotal Ultrasound

I mentioned in an earlier update (Causes Of Scrotum And Testicle Pain Weeks After Urethroplasty) that that I had been experiencing scrotal and testicle pain even 15 weeks after my urethroplasty surgery. The scrotal pain is a burning and sometimes “pins-and-needles” type of pain in the skin. The testicle pain is the opposite, more of a throbbing ache, and mostly in the left testicle.

I also mentioned that I had developed an inguinal hernia at some point in the whole urethral stricture period. You can read more about that in the post Inguinal Hernia And Urinary Retention. So I’m having surgery to repair that. Hopefully four surgeries in one year will be enough to last me awhile.

During the pre-op appointment for the hernia surgery, I mentioned the pain I’d been having down there, and they scheduled me for an ultrasound of the scrotum/testicles. Today (the day before my hernia surgery) I saw the surgeon and got the results of the ultrasound. He said it was good news because there was absolutely nothing wrong with the testicles. And there was nothing abnormal g0ing on in the scrotum, other than the expected bit of tissue poking into it from the hernia. Unfortunately, he also said he didn’t think the hernia was causing the pain in the testicles. So the surgery will probably have no effect on that. He did say that there is a possibility of the testicle pain being at least partially caused by the tissue poking into the scrotum. But more than likely, all the scrotum pain is still just left over from the urethroplasty in July. As I reported in an earlier post, my urologists said it was not totally unexpected to have pain in the area lasting as long as a year! So it’s probably just that. Here’s hoping.

One other thing that I have noticed in the recovery from urethroplasty has been a feeling that there is – forgive the crudeness of how I put it – something up my butt. At first, I just assumed it was the swelling of soft tissue between the incision site in the perineum and the urethra. They did have to hack their way through a lot of tissue to access the repair site. So I’ve been sitting on a donut-shaped pillow whenever I am seated. Occasionally I have been testing how it feels to sit without the pillow, and it has always felt like there is something up there, so I get back on the donut. But even now, at the 15-week point past the surgery, I still feel that fullness and swelling up there. It doesn’t hurt, though, which is good. But I felt I needed to at least ask someone at Urology since I was right there today (General Surgery and Urology operate out of the same clinic at my hospital).

So I sent for a urology nurse. He asked if I was having trouble with bowel movements. No, I was not. Then he asked if I had ever had trouble with hemorrhoids. Why yes, I said, yes I have. Most of my life, in fact. He said that sitting on a donut pillow might actually have been making my hemorrhoids worse. That actually seems to make sense to me. Even though the donut pillow is often used to relieve hemorrhoid pain, sitting on it all the time, every day, for 15 weeks, can cause more pressure pushing out and down in the affected area over the open part of the donut.

So it may be hemmorhoids? Really? Wow. OK. So now I’m supposed to try hemorrhoid ointment for a few days and see if that works. My wife is at the store right now, and the ointment is on the list. I will let you know if that works out.

In the time left between now and my surgery tomorrow, I’m sitting on soft chairs and couches with no donut pillow. It feels weird, but I’m hoping that together with the ointment, will cause things to get back to normal. Like I said, I’ll let you know.