Thermal Imaging in the Diagnosis of Acute Testicular Pain

Plain-language summary

Acute scrotal pain due to testicular torsion is a rare but urgent urological condition that requires immediate surgery to prevent permanent damage or loss of the testicle. Early detection is crucial to minimize delays from the onset of pain to operative treatment. The diagnosis of torsion involves a combination of physical examination and imaging studies, such as Doppler ultrasound (DU). However, DU requires an experienced radiologist and may cause unnecessary time delays. Thermal imaging is a noninvasive technique that can detect skin surface temperature variations using a highly sensitive infrared camera. Although there are some promising animal studies using thermal imaging for the diagnosis of testicular ischemia, number of studies in humans is very limited. According to a small pilot study in 2024, thermal imaging is a fast, feasible and noninvasive diagnostic tool that seems to have considerable potential in the evaluation of patients with acute testicular pain, especially those with symptoms of testicular torsion. However, further research with a larger sample size is needed. In this multicenter study, the investigators aim is to determine the role of thermal imaging in the diagnosis of acute testicular pain. Males with acute testicular pain entering emergency are included. After informed consent thermal image of testicles will be taken before any additional investigations such as laboratory tests and DU. Participants are treated as usual and testicular temperatures will be correlated with final diagnosis after approximately 6-month study period is over.

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