6 health issues that may shrink your testicles including a condition more common on the left side

Aw, nuts.If you’ve noticed your balls have gotten smaller, it could be a sign of an underlying health condition.Before jumping to get scrotal filler to plump things up, it’s best to get to the bottom of what’s caused your family jewels to depreciate in the first place.Dr.

Alexander Pastuszak, a urologist and male reproductive medicine specialist, spoke to The Post about six issues that could be at play — including a painful condition that can require testical removal and an inevitable change that all men can look forward to.External testosterone is “probably the most common cause of acquired shrinkage,” Pastuszak said.As many as 11 million men are on testosterone replacement therapy, or TRT.When the body struggles to make enough testosterone on its own, it introduces a host or problems, from sex performance, to trouble losing weight, and fatigue.TRT is a common solution to this issue, but it presents another one: Because the meds add enough testosterone, the body stops making any more.Then, all the tubes that are no longer being used as often to release hormones “shut down and shrink,” Pastuszak said.

Testicles may noticeably wither “within a few months of consistent use.”With TRT, shrinkage is expected and not necessarily a problem.Men on TRT may see shrinkage but all the benefits of the medicine at the same time.

Testes shrinkage also happens with steroids, which are synthetic or modified testosterone.Sometimes it’s prescribed medically, like TRT, but other times it’s misused to enhance performance in sports or bodybuilding.The effects can be more dramatic as steroids are often taken at a much higher dosage.At the base of the balls, there’s a cord of vessels, nerves, and tubes that hold the testes inside the skin and muscle of the scrotum.

If that cord gets injured — through with injury, heavy exercise or sometimes without a clear reason at all — it can cause serious problems.Called testicular torsion, this condition is defined by...