Abubakar U., 2

Two-year-old Abubakar Usman lives with his parents in a small community in Jos, in a two-room apartment with a pit toilet, borehole water, and electricity. The family survives on just 15,000 naira a month. Since birth, Abubakar has had a swelling in his right scrotum that has kept increasing. A concerned neighbour referred the family to the hospital, where examination revealed a cystic scrotal swelling, confirmed as a right testicular hydrocele, a collection of fluid around the testis. He was scheduled for surgery (herniotomy with hydrocelectomy) to drain the fluid and correct the defect, but his parents simply could not raise the money, and the surgery has waited ever since.

Without surgery, the hydrocele will keep enlarging, causing discomfort and pressure that can compromise blood flow to the testis, risking damage and future fertility problems. Since it is often connected to the abdomen in children, there is also risk of a hernia developing through the same defect, which could strangulate. Timely surgery is simple, safe, and curative. Prognosis after treatment is good.