Morphological changes of the vaginal process wall of the peritoneum in the case of its obliteration disorders in children of different age groups

According to statistical data, diseases associated with defects of the vaginal process of the peritoneum (such as inguinal hernia, conjunctive hydrocele of the testicles, cyst of the elements of the spermatic cord) continue to occupy a significant place among the pathologies detected in the children’s population. According to literary sources, such diseases and possible complications that may arise during their treatment can contribute to the development of male infertility, which, in turn, can negatively affect the reproductive health indicators of the nation. Purpose - the study of morphological changes in the wall of the vaginal process of the peritoneum with its non-obliteration to reveal the histological features of its structure depending on the age of children. Materials and methods. The study included children whose age did not exceed 7 years and who had disorders of obliteration of the vaginal process of the peritoneum in the form of inguinal hernias, hydrocele of the testicles and cysts of the elements of the spermatic cord. In the course of an operative treatment, a fragment of the wall of the vaginal process of the peritoneum was removed from such patients for the purpose of further studying its histological structure. Results. In the histological samples, muscle, fibrous and fatty elements were found in different amounts and ratios. The presence of degenerative pathohistological changes contributing to the formation of hernial defects of the inguinal canal was revealed. Also, with age, a progressive development of the processes of atrophy of muscle fibers with their vacant replacement mainly by adipose tissue was observed. Conclusions. Analyzing the conducted morphological studies of the wall of the non-obliterated vaginal process of the peritoneum in children, it should be noted that there is a direct relationship between the number of fatty elements in the tissue of the vaginal process and the age of the patient and also an inverse relationship between the number of muscle elements in the tissue of the vaginal process and the age of the child. The research was carried out in accordance with the principles of the Helsinki Declaration. The study protocol was approved by the Local Ethics Committee of participating institution. The informed consent of the patient was obtained for conducting the studies. No conflict of interest was declared by the authors.