Effects of Roentgen Ray Irradiation on the Testes of Rabbits

THE POSSIBILITY of damaging effects to the body of patients caused by low voltage roentgen ray therapy administered for dermatologic conditions is a constant problem to dermatologists. Radiation directed to the scrotum and adjacent areas in 4 male patients was said to have caused sterility, and in 2 other male patients it was thought likely that sterility had been produced by treatment with roentgen rays.1Although the amount of roentgen ray therapy given the patients was not stated, it was presumed that the treatments were responsible for their sterility. Since information is available concerning the tolerated dose of roentgen ray irradiation for human ovaries2but seems to be lacking in regard to human testes, it is difficult to evaluate such a report. It is well known, however, that in animals the spermatogonia and the fully developed spermatozoa in the semen, seminal vesicles or testes are more resistant to