Clinical and Subclinical Varicocele Incidence in Patients With Primary Varicose Veins Requiring Surgery

Background The purpose of this study was to analyze the incidence of clinical and subclinical varicocele in patients with primary varicose veins requiring surgery. Methods A total of 100 patients with primary varicose veins requiring surgery were evaluated. Clinical varicocele was found in each patient through physical examination. Each patient was also evaluated with ultrasound because of evidence of subclinical varicocele. Results Among the patients with varicose veins, 28 had no clinical sign of varicocele, whereas the remaining 72 had varicocele with different clinical levels (72%). Doppler ultrasound revealed that 32 patients had no reflux flow, whereas the other 68 had different grades of reflux flow (68%). Conclusions Clinical or subclinical varicocele may be highly present in patients with severe venous disease. However, these types of varicoceles do not cause infertility in most patients. Nevertheless, infertility may occur in subsequent years, especially in young patients who have venous disease and undergo surgery, and they should be aware of this condition.