Boy, 11, loses a testicle after it TWISTED 540 degrees cutting off the blood supply

A young boy has lost one of his testicles after it twisted one-and-a-half times around inside his scrotum and cut off the blood supply.

The 11-year-old, known by his nickname Liang Liang, was taken to hospital by his worried parents after his testicle turned black.

The lack of blood supply had caused severe tissue death.

His parents noticed something was wrong earlier this month after he started walking awkwardly with a limp.

By the time he was checked by doctor Chen Guangjie, from The Children’s Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, his testicle has twisted 540 degrees from its spermatic cord – the blood vessel connecting it to the rest of the body.

The organ was extremely swollen and had even burst open at its base slightly because of the pressure.

The condition is known as testicular torsion and it can happen after an injury to the scrotum or following strenuous exercise.

It is most common in boys aged 12 to 16, but it can occur at any age.

Doctor Chen told Liang Liang’s parents that there was “no value” in retaining the boy’s testicle as it had died – meaning it could no longer be used.

It was also discovered that Liang Liang, from Hangzhou, capital of East China’s Zhejiang Province, was suffering from bilateral cryptorchidism, which means his testicles had not properly dropped into the scrotum after birth.

As a result, it had remained partly inside his body and may have contributed to the testicular torsion he suffered.

Doctor Chen said the ordeal means Liang Liang’s ability to have kids in the future has “most certainly been compromised”.

It is now unclear how well he will be able to produce sperm, if at all.

Dr Chen said: “Generally speaking, six hours after testicular torsion, patients lose the ability to produce sperm.

“If the angle of the twist is 90 degrees, the testes will die in a week.

“At 180 degrees that happens within three to four days, and it’s 12 to 24 hours at 360 degrees.

“If the spermatic cord twist exceeds 720 degrees, the testes will die within two hours.”

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