Expert: Stephen W. Leslie, MD - 5/16/2007

Question
Hello Doctor.  Firstly, I would like to commend the work that you're doing on this site.  It is quite admirable.  

Recently I've been exerting myself during sex, that is, trying to hold back my ejaculation and having alot of sex.  
A day after sex, I woked up the next morning with a hard erection.  I noticed that my left testicle was severly cramping up whenever blood was exerted into the penis.  
It feels as if either the left testicle, or area behind the left spermatic cord, is cramping up whenever I get a hard erection.  The unusual part is, the cramping pain ONLY occurs with an erection and when the blood is "exerted" into the penis.  If I'm flacid, then there is generally no pain. There are no other problems, such as lumps, swelling, urination pain etc. My speculation is either a left Pelvic floor cramp or a left cremaster cramp.  Its been about 4 days since the initial onset and I've taken anti-inflammatories, and iced the area.  

Are these muscle cramps possible??
What else could this be?
What should I do to resolve the pain?

Thank you sincerely.  

Answer
While almost anything is possible, the muscles in these areas rarely cause problems.  The only muscle that causes a change in location of the testicle is the cremasteric muscle and it's always possible that this muscle is damaged in some way.  Anti-inflammatories and ice are reasonable first steps.  Obviously, you should avoid sexual activity until this has resolved.

My best advice is to see a urologist for an examination.  While this doesn't sound serious, it's best to make sure.