Table 1.
Main characteristics of the eight studies included.
| Study | Region | Mean age or age range of participants (years) | TM group n (%) | Confirmation of cancer diagnosis after US | Bilateral testicular volume (mean ± SD) | Cryptorchidism history (%) in TM group | Bilateral TM (%) | Semen abnormalities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aizenstein et al. (2) | USA | 37 | 5 (2.8) | NA | NR | 40 | 50 | All participants had oligo and/ or astheno |
| La Vignera et al. (26) | Italy | 43.3 | 60 (18.8) | Histology | NR | NR | NR | Oligo/astheno and/or terato in 66.6% of the TM group |
| Mazzilli et al. (27) | Italy | NA | 13 (4.6) | NA | Whole population: 18.0 ± 4.5 ml | NR | NR | In the whole study population: oligo: 23.8% azo: 5.6% astheno: 70.4% terato: 20.3% |
| Negri et al. (25) | Italy | 37 | 31 (1.4) | Histology | NR | 13 | NR | NS |
| Pierik et al. (23) | NL | 20–58 | 12 (0.9) | Histology | NR | 33.3 | NR | NS |
| Qublan et al. (28) | Jordan | 31 | 23 (9.8) | NA | Whole population: 14.0 ± 3.6 ml | NR | NR | All participants had oligo or azo |
| Sakamoto et al. (24) | Japan | 35.8 | 31 (5.6) | Histology | TM group: 9.0 ± 5.2 ml Controls: 9.8 ± 5.1 ml | 3.2 | 90.3 | Oligo or azo in 64.5% of whole study population |
| Thomas et al. (7) | UK | 29–51 | 5 (3.1) | NA | NR | 0 | 0 | NS |
Astheno, asthenozoospermia; Azo, azoospermia; Oligo, oligozoospermia; Terato, teratozoospermia; TM, testicular microlithiasis; NA, not applicable (no testicular masses were detected at US); NL, Netherlands; NR, not reported; NS, not specified; SD, standard deviation; US, ultrasonography.