Observations on cystic fibrosis of the pancreas. V. Developmental changes in the male genital system

Abstract

In a review of the male genital tract in autopsied patients with cystic fibrosis, sections of the spermatic cord were available from 14 infants and children and 3 adults. The vas deferens appeared to be normally formed in 8 children, but it was atrophic in 2, replaced by smooth muscle in 2, and absent in the remaining 2 children. Normal development of the epididymal ducts was present in 13 of 19 infants and children; the other 6 had varying degrees of dilatation and atrophy; fibrotic ducts were present in the single available section of adult epididymis. These findings suggest that the transport duct system in affected males undergoes changes similar to those in the pancreas, salivary gland, and gallbladder and that male infertility in adults with cystic fibrosis is probably caused by degenerative lesions secondary to obstruction rather than by anomalous development of the genital tract.