Epididymitis

Overview Epididymitis is the bacterial infection and inflammation of the epididymis.1 There is one epididymis for each testicle. The epididymis is a single, narrow, tightly-coiled tube that collects sperm from a testicle and moves it to the vas deferens. After spermatogenesis occurs, sperm are moved to the epididymides and stored there for several weeks to…

Spermatogenesis

Spermatogenesis is the production and development of sperm.  This process begins at puberty and continues for the remainder of a male’s life.  The sperm and the egg, which are the male and female gametes, meet during fertilization.  Both gametes are haploid cells; these cells contain 23 unpaired chromosomes, which is half of the human genetic…

Nongonococcal Urethritis

What Is It? ​Nongonococcal urethritis (NGU) is a broad term describing used to describe an inflammation of the urethra. NGU is caused by the introduction of bacteria, not including gonorrhea. While NGU can be caused by several different microorganisms including Mycoplasma genitalium and adenovirus, the most common NGU-inducing pathogen is chlamydia.1 Who Is at Risk?…

Chlamydia

Chlamydia is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) caused by Chlamydia trachomatis (shown above) , a bacterium that infects and parasitically lives within human cells, sometimes leading to several other disease states in both males and females.1 Chlamydia is the most frequently reported sexually transmitted bacterial infection in the United States, infecting approximately 2.86 million new…

The Testes

Typically, males have two testes. The testes are contained within the scrotal sac, located beneath the penis and in front of the anus. They are round in shape and tend to be about the same size as golf balls. Testicles are attached to the body via the spermatic cords, which are cord-like tissue structures formed…