Balneário Piçarras Ordered to Compensate Teen for Lost Testicle

A court in Joinville, Santa Catarina, Brazil ruled that the municipality of Balneário Piçarras must compensate a teenage boy for the loss of a testicle caused by a delayed diagnosis of testicular torsion. The adolescent initially sought care for severe testicular pain, nausea and vomiting and was incorrectly diagnosed with a possible hernia. No urgent ultrasound or referral to a specialized unit was made, and the condition worsened.

Subsequent examination confirmed torsion, but the organ was already necrotic, requiring orchiectomy. Expert testimony found critical failures in the first medical assessment, establishing a direct causal link between the municipality’s health service and the injury. The municipality’s claim that the condition is difficult to diagnose was rejected, and the court ordered payment for moral and aesthetic damages.