Use of Hormones, Tissue Factors and Bioengineering in the Management of Hypospadias

Hypospadiology is a rapidly evolving field. Progress in the understanding of how hormonal therapy affects the growth of the phallus has allowed surgeons to optimize the tissues for surgery. But conflicting data from a number of studies and a lack of consensus on drugs, their dosing, mode of delivery and timing of use means that the creation of protocols is unlikely to happen in the near future. Nonetheless, there is a hope and the standardization of scientific reporting will make it easier to compare data at the global level. There are reports of the increasing incidence of hypospadias and the etiology is thought to be multifactorial. Although complex interactions between genetic polymorphisms and the environment make it difficult to identify the exact factors responsible for hypospadias, the advent of massively parallel gene sequencing, large scale epigenetic screens and CRISPR technology will definitely ease the process. The knowledge of culprit genes will not only broaden our understanding of embryology and growth but will also enable us to predict and/or modify tissue healing. Advances in tissue engineering are also expected to provide a plethora of biomaterials for urethral reconstruction. The development of this field is directly linked with the elucidation of the processes of proliferation and vascularization coupled with the cataloguing of the growth factors involved. One can safely conclude that the exciting new advances in the field will have far reaching consequences on patient care and counselling.