Validity of self-reported male sexual function scales in a young Chinese population:a comparative study with clinician-assisted evaluation

Psychometric scales,commonly used to gauge sexual function,can sometimes be influenced by response biases.In our researchfrom June 2020 to April 2021,we examined the accuracy of self-reported sexual function scales.We invited patients from theDepartment of Infertility and Sexual Medicine at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University(Guangzhou,China),whohave male sexual dysfunction,to participate by filling out a self-reported version of a specific questionnaire.In addition,they wentthrough a clinician-assisted version of this questionnaire,encompassing tools such as the Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool(PEDT),the 6-item International Index of Erectile Function(IIEF-6),the Erection Hardness Scale(EHS),and the MasturbationErection Index(MEI).Using the clinician-assisted version as a reference,we categorized patients and applied various statisticalmethods,such as the Chi-square test,intraclass correlation coefficient(ICC),logistic regression,and the Bland–Altman plot,to gauge reliability.In our study with 322 participants,we found that while there were no notable discrepancies in error ratesbased on our categorization,certain scales showed significant differences in terms of overestimation and underestimation,withthe exception of the PEDT.The positive diagnosis rate consistency between the self-reported and clinician-assisted versions wasobserved.High ICC values between the two versions across the scales were indicative of remarkable reliability.Our findings showthat the self-reported versions of tools such as EHS,IIEF-6,MEI,and PEDT are credible and hold clinical reliability.However,employing a dual-diagnosis approach might be more prudent to circumvent potential misdiagnoses.

Effects of percutaneous varicocele repair on testicular volume:results from a 12-month follow-up

Varicocele is a comm on fin ding in men. Varicocele correcti on has bee n advocated for young patients with testicular hypotrophy, but there is a lack of morphofunctional follow-up data. We assessed whether percutaneous treatment of left varicocele is associated with testicular "catch-up growth" in the following 12 months by retrospectively reviewing data from an electronic database of 10 656 patients followed up in our clinic between 2006 and 2016. We selected all young adults (<35 years) with left varicocele who un derwe nt percuta neous treatment, had a minimum of 12 mon ths' ultraso und imagi ng follow-up, and had no other con ditions affecting testicular volume. One hundred and fourteen men (mean±standard deviation [s.d.] of age: 22.8 ± 5.4 years) met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Left testicular hypotrophy (LTH), defined as a >20% difference between left and right testicular volume at baseline, was observed in 26 (22.8%) men. Participants with LTH (mean±s.d.: 14.5 ± 2.7 ml) had lower baseline testicular volume compared to those without LTH (mean±s.d.: 15.7 ± 3.8 ml;P= 0.032). Repeated measures mixed models showed a sign ifica nt in teraction betwee n LTH and time posttreatme nt when correcting for baseli ne left testicular volume (β= 0.114, 95% confidence interval [Cl]: 0.018-0.210, P=0.020), resulting in a catch-up growth of up to 1.37 ml per year (95% Cl: 0.221- 2.516). Age at intervention was also associated with reduced testicular volume (-0.072 ml per year, 95% Cl:-0.135--0.009;P = 0.024). Percutaneous treatment of left varicocele in young adults with LTH can result in catch-up growth over 1 year of follow-up. The reproductive and psychological implicati ons of these findings n eed to be confirmed in Ion ger and larger prospective studies.