Cryptorchidism Cryptorchidism Cryptorchidism is the absence of one or both testes from the scrotum. The word is from the Greek κρυπτός, "kryptos", meaning hidden, and ὄρχις, "orchis", meaning testicle. It is the most common birth defect of the male genital tract. About 3% of full-term and 30% of premature infant boys are born with at least one undescended testis. However, about 80% of cryptorchid testes descend by the first year of life (the majority within three months), making the true incidence of cryptorchidism around 1% overall. Cryptorchidism may develop after infancy, sometimes as late as young adulthood, but that is exceptional.
Users' Guides to the Medical Literature Users' Guides to the Medical Literature The Users’ Guides to the Medical Literature is a series of articles originally published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association", later rewritten and compiled in a textbook, now in its third edition. The guides provide practical, clinician-friendly advice on all aspects of evidence-based medicine. During the late 1970s a group of clinical epidemiologists at McMaster University including Dr. David Sackett prepared a series of articles to assist clinicians interpreting clinical research. These articles, introducing the term "critical appraisal", appeared in the "Canadian Medical Association Journal" beginning in 1981. In 1990 Dr. Gordon