The influence of vasovasostomy on testicular alterations after vasectomy in Lewis rats

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Abstract
The occurrence of alterations in testicular weight and morphology after vasectomy and vasectomy reversal by vasovasostomy was studied in Lewis rats. Animals were studied 3, 4, and 7 months after bilateral vasectomy or a vasectomy followed 3 months later by vasovasostomy. Other rats served as shamoperated controls. The weights of the testes in vasectomy and vasovasostomy animals fell into two groups—small testes weighing less than 0.88 g and normal‐sized testes of 1.2 g or more. When the extent of testicular alterations was estimated in sections for light microscopy by use of a semiquantitative testicular biopsy score count (TBSC), the morphology of the testes corresponded closely to the testis weight (r = .94), small testes having correspondingly low TBSC scores. In severely altered small testes, the seminiferous tubules were narrower than in sham‐operated rats, and numbers of germ cells were greatly depleted. Many tubules contained only Sertoli cells and spermatogonia, although spermatocytes were present in a minority of tubules. A few seminiferous tubules contained multinucleate spermatids. Electron microscopy of severely altered tubules revealed closely apposed processes of Sertoli cells, which contained filaments, microtubules, and endoplasmic reticulum. In contrast, testes with normal weight in vasectomy and vasovasostomy groups resembled those of the sham‐operated animals. Comparison of distributions of testicular biopsy score counts demonstrated differences between vasectomy and vasovasostomy groups as time after operation increased. At the 3–4‐month intervals, approximately one‐third of the testes were severely altered in both vasectomy and vasovasostomy groups. However, by 7 months the proportion of altered testes progressed to 60% in animals with a vasectomy, while it remained similar to the earlier intervals in rats that had received a vasovasostomy. These results suggest that vasovasostomy may prevent the progression of testicular alterations that occur after vasectomy, but vasovasostomy does not appear effective in reversing testicular changes.