Question

Lord's plication is done for:

• A. Inguinal hernia
• B. Testicular cancer
• C. Hydrocele
• D. Testicular varices

Hint:

Think of the operation that pleats the tunica vaginalis to stop fluid collecting around the testis.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

The question is really asking which scrotal pathology is corrected by bunching the tunica vaginalis with radial sutures. That description fits a hydrocele. A hydrocele is fluid trapped between the two layers of the tunica vaginalis, and the surgical aim is to stop the lining from secreting and re-accumulating fluid.

Lord's technique is deliberately minimal. The surgeon makes a small incision, evacuates the fluid, and then runs concentric plicating stitches that gather the sac wall into pleats hugging the testis. Because almost no tissue is dissected free, the operation leaves very little raw surface and dead space, so post-operative haematoma is uncommon. This is why it is chosen for sacs that are thin and supple.

Contrast this with the other listed conditions. An inguinal hernia needs the defect in the abdominal wall closed, by tissue repair or mesh, not by folding a sac. A testicular tumour demands removal of the whole testis through an inguinal approach to avoid seeding. A varicocele is dilated pampiniform veins and is handled by ligating or embolising those veins. None of these involves plicating the tunica.

So the only condition for which Lord's plication is the named operation is hydrocele.
\[\boxed{\text{Hydrocele}}\]