A 6-month-old male infant was diagnosed with a hydrocele. The nurse practitioner should:

Rationale: A. Immediate referral to a pediatric urologist is not necessary for most infant hydroceles. B. Hydrocele in infants is typically a normal finding due to fluid accumulation in the scrotum, often related to a patent processus vaginalis. Most hydroceles resolve spontaneously within the first year of life, especially by 12 months. C. Waiting 3 months may be too short for natural resolution; most guidelines suggest observation until at least 12 months. D. Waiting 6 months is reasonable, but the standard approach considers hydrocele normal and self-resolving, making routine referral unnecessary unless it persists beyond 12–18 months or becomes symptomatic.