Traumatic scrotal emphysema: An underreported benign condition and a brief review of its mechanism

Abstract

Scrotal emphysema, also known as pneumoscrotum, is an uncommon condition due to the subcutaneous accumulation of air in the  scrotum. Air accumulation may be local, due to infection in the scrotum, or of distant origin from lung, peritoneal or retroperitoneal  sources.In the present case, a twenty-seven-year-old patient was brought dead to the emergency with a history of road traffic collision.  The patient sustained multiple injuries to the head, chest, and abdomen and the scrotum appeared to be distended with palpable  crepitus. Subcutaneous emphysema of the chest and abdominal wall was absent. The presence of air in the scrotum was confirmed by  visualizing the air bubble in a water-filled syringe. Though it appears to be a benign condition, efforts should be made to find out it's  primary or secondary etiology. The traumatic causes of scrotal emphysema are underreported and receive little discussion in forensic  pathology hence causes, and the mechanism of its development are discussed.