Q: I am a 32 years old man having undescended testicle since childhood, which was detected only in adulthood. After consulting the doctor, I got the operation done and both testes were brought down to their position few years ago. However, the doctor suspected my sperm count to be zero. Is there anyway I can father a child?

A:Testis contains germ cells, which produce sperms (the power of fertility), and Sertoli cells producing male hormone (giving secondary sexual characters to a male). Undescended testes lose the germ cells gradually after the age of two years, and thus are not able to produce sperms if they descend later in life. Only those undescended testes, which were lying low near the mouth of testis may retain the power of fertility to any reasonable extent. It is customary to take testicular biopsy at the time of surgery, which is able to predict the chances of retrieval of any sperm material from the testis. Such sperm material may be frozen and preserved for assisted fertilisation techniques. You may attend an infertility centre or consult your urologist to answer queries regarding your particular case.