A transgender woman had to have one of her testicles removed because of her habit of ‘pulling in’ – which became known through the hit TV show Ru Paul’s Drag Race.
The unidentified 24-year-old, from the Philippines, has not yet undergone a complete gender reassignment surgery.
The diligent dresser has been pushing her testicles back into her abdomen four times a week since her adulthood, in an attempt to hide her genitals.
Her habit often caused her, but she picked it up.
But when she pulled her testicles back into her scrotum during her last attempt, one of them wrapped around the cord from which it hung.
The brutal accident – known as testicular torsion – left the woman in unbearable pain and cut off the blood supply to her genitals.
Without urgent treatment to allow blood to flow again, the testicle can die and must be removed.
Experts told MailOnline that although there is little research on the dangers of insertion, it poses a clear threat to testicles. They said severe pain in the testicle lasting at least 20 minutes should be reported immediately to a doctor.
Tucking is a common practice in trans and towing communities, with the habit appearing in VH1’s Ru Paul’s Drag Race.
A transgender woman from the Philippines was forced to have a testicle removed after struggling for years
Trinity ‘The Tuck’ Taylor made a video on how to stop. She warns of the dangers of torsion of the testicles – if a testicle wraps around the cord from which it hangs – in the video
Trinity ‘The Tuck’ Taylor, a participant from the show’s ninth season, offers a guide on how to stop on YouTube, warning of the dangers of torsion towards the end.
The Filipino woman who sustained the injury took anti-androgen pills to lower her testosterone levels – she has not yet undergone a full assignment operation.
She sought help from the Brokenshire Integrated Health Ministries in Davao City following the painful injury.
Doctors were told that she regularly pressed her testicles into her inguinal canals, which are passages in the abdomen that contain the spermatic cord.
Her case – published in a medical journal – also revealed that she would insert her penis and empty scrotum between her legs.
To then return her testicles to their normal position, she pulls them out of her body by grabbing and pulling her scrotum.
Doctors examined her testicles to get under her excruciating pain.
Her scrotum was red and swollen and medics diagnosed her with the testicular torsion.
Testicular torsion – which can occur at any time and even during sleep – occurs in one in every 4,000 men under the age of 25.
Doctors gave her an ultrasound to examine the severity of her condition and find out what treatment she needed.
She initially requested to remove both testicles. But just an hour after she was informed that the life-changing obstacle was preventing her from ever having children, she decided to lose just one.
Surgeons operated on and found that the testicle had been damaged by the years they had been inserted, and removed it. There were no complications from the surgery.
Dr Clarence Debarbo, author of the case report published in Urology Case Reports, said the case highlights a problem facing transgender women who are reluctant to seek medical attention for pain in the testicles caused by the bending.
He said: ‘The patient has been experiencing discomfort and pain as a result of administration for six years, which is the same with other transgender people.
‘But they are reluctant to seek medical attention for complaints in the testicles, and then it may be too late to save the testis.
‘Although trans women at a younger age want to hide their testicles or undergo sex reassignment surgery, transgender individuals want to have biological children as they get older, and therefore awareness of the problem should be spread so that they do not resent over years. to come. ‘
This is not the first time that knotting has been linked to the testicular torsion.
Doctors in Florida revealed in 2016 how a 28-year-old had to have a testicle removed after it rotated 360 degrees.
Dr Fardod O’Kelly, a urological surgeon at Beacon Hospital in Dublin, said the condition was a ‘surgical emergency with a countdown’.
He told MailOnline: ‘In general, there is very little evidence that the practice of folding increases the risk of torsion of the testicles.
‘The testis runs a greater risk of trauma if it is inserted because it rests against the pubic bone as opposed to the comfortable sitting in the scrotum.
“To choose is the choice of an individual, and like all personal decisions, one must weigh the pros and cons.”