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Pediatr Surg Int (2008) 24:437438 DOI 10.1007/s00383-008-2111-2
TECHNICAL INNOVATION
Balloon distension of scrotum: a step to facilitate creation of dartos pouch during orchiopexy
Divakar Dalela Rahul J. Sinha Apul Goel S. N. Sankhwar
Accepted: 16 January 2008 / Published online: 8 February 2008 Springer-Verlag 2008
Abstract Dartos pouch creation is an important step of orchiopexy. We describe the use of the balloon of a Foley catheter to distend the scrotal sac and stretch the scrotal parietal layers over it to facilitate bloodless and quick dissection for the creation of a dartos pouch.
Keywords Balloon dilatation Cryptorchidism
Introduction
Creation of dartos pouch is an important step of orchiopexy. Literature on the technique of creation of the dartos pouch per se is limited. Diagrams in textbooks point to the creation of the pouch with the help of a hemostatic forceps or a nger placed inside the scrotum [1, 2].
Utmost care needs to be exercised during creation of this pouch especially when the dartos is being dissected off from the undersurface of the scrotal skin because the dartos is a imsy muscle and any inadvertent trauma would make the hole larger or weaken the muscle. The dissection is made cumbersome by the slippery nature of the tissues and absence of any xed scaffold against which the surgeon can stabilize the dartos muscle.
This problem is circumvented by our technique where a distended Foley catheter balloon is used as a rest to facilitate the creation of a dartos pouch quickly and easily. Our technical modication minimizes inadvertent injury to the dartos, particularly in young children in whom this layer might be thin.
Materials and methods
The inguinal canal...