Cochrane · systematic review · CD000479
Surgical or radiological treatment for varicoceles in subfertile men
Persad, E, O'Loughlin, CAA, Kaur, S, et al. · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · 2021 · Cochrane Library
SoF tableOnly the outcomes this review put in its Summary of Findings table are listed (the Cochrane Handbook caps them at about seven per comparison). Its other analyses are not shown here.
Questions
20
current version
GRADE rated
7
No studies
13
Included studies
NR
No studies 13 · 65%Ungraded 0 · 0%Very low 4 · 20%Low 3 · 15%Moderate 0 · 0%High 0 · 0%
Ungraded means an effect was reported without a GRADE rating; it is not a gap. No studies means the review found nothing to answer the question. The six categories are a display order, not a score.
Questions and results
Show all 2 versionsVaricocele treatment compared to non‐surgical, delayed, or no treatment for varicoceles in subfertile men
Population: Varicoceles in subfertile men
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Live birth Varicocele treatment vs non‐surgical, delayed, or no treatment | RR 2.27 [0.19, 26.93] | 2 studies · 204 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency |
Adverse events Varicocele treatment vs non‐surgical, delayed, or no treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Pregnancy Varicocele treatment vs non‐surgical, delayed, or no treatment | RR 1.55 [1.06, 2.26] | 13 studies · 1193 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, inconsistency |
Varicocele recurrence Varicocele treatment vs non‐surgical, delayed, or no treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Quality of life Varicocele treatment vs non‐surgical, delayed, or no treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Surgical treatment compared to radiological treatment for varicoceles in subfertile men
Population: Varicoceles in subfertile men
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Live birth Surgical treatment vs radiological treatment | RR 1.49 [0.66, 3.37] | 1 study · 155 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Adverse event: hydrocele formation Surgical treatment vs radiological treatment | RR 4.24 [0.53, 33.76] | 3 studies · 284 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision, inconsistency |
Pregnancy Surgical treatment vs radiological treatment | RR 1.13 [0.75, 1.7] | 5 studies · 456 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Varicocele recurrence Surgical treatment vs radiological treatment | RR 1.31 [0.82, 2.8] | 3 studies · 380 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Quality of life Surgical treatment vs radiological treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Surgical treatment compared to other surgical treatment for varicoceles in subfertile men
Population: Varicoceles in subfertile men
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Live birth Surgical treatment vs other surgical treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Adverse events Surgical treatment vs other surgical treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Pregnancy Surgical treatment vs other surgical treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Varicocele recurrence Surgical treatment vs other surgical treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Quality of life Surgical treatment vs other surgical treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Radiological treatment compared to radiological treatment for varicoceles in subfertile men
Population: Varicoceles in subfertile men
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Live birth Radiological treatment vs radiological treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Adverse events Radiological treatment vs radiological treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Pregnancy Radiological treatment vs radiological treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Varicocele recurrence Radiological treatment vs radiological treatment | RR 1 [0.16, 6.2] | 1 study · 30 participants | Very low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Quality of life Radiological treatment vs radiological treatment | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |