The DASH diet might be an effective alternative to the low-oxalate diet in reducing calcium oxalate supersaturation and should be studied more.

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Objectives: To evaluate the effect of autologous muscle-derived cells injection in the treatment of complicated stress urinary incontinence in female patients. Methods: Female patients presenting with severe and complicated stress urinary incontinence secondary to the bladder neck and/or urethral trauma or congenital epispadias (with or without exstrophy) were enrolled in this prospective study. They underwent transurethral injection of autologous muscle-derived cells. In selected cases, another injection was given after 6 months, as per the surgeon's assessment. All patients were monitored for 1 year, and the effect of autologous muscle-derived cells was evaluated by cough stress test, 1-h pad test and Incontinence Impact Questionnaireshort form score. A multichannel urodynamic study and maximum urethral closure pressure were carried out before and 12 months after the last treatment session. Cough stress test, 1-h pad test and uroflowmetry were repeated 36 months after the last injection. Severity and occurrence of complications were recorded at each visit. Results: All 10 patients who completed the study were monitored for 36 months. Three patients were cured, four had improved and three did not respond to the treatment. There was no major adverse effect related to the treatment. Conclusions: Muscle-derived cell therapy might represent a minimally-invasive and a safe procedure in the treatment of patients with severe and complicated stress urinary incontinence.

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This paper reports on the first demonstration of a gravimetric chemical sensor based on direct integration of Single Wall Carbon Nanotubes (SWNTs) grown by Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) on AlN ContourMode MicroElectroMechanical (MEMS) resonators. In this first prototype the ability of SWNTs to readily adsorb volatile organic chemicals has been combined with the capability of AlN Contour-Mode MEMS resonator to provide for different levels of sensitivity due to separate frequencies of operation on the same die. Two devices with resonance frequencies of 287 MHz and 442 MHz have been exposed to different concentrations of DMMP in the range from 80 to 800 ppm. Values of mass sensitivity equal to 1.8 KHz/pg and 2.65 KHz/pg respectively have been measured. This material is posted here with permission of the IEEE. Such permission of the IEEE does not in any way imply IEEE endorsement of any of the University of Pennsylvania's products or services. Internal or personal use of this material is permitted. However, permission to reprint/republish this material for advertising or promotional purposes or for creating new collective works for resale or redistribution must be obtained from the IEEE by writing to pubs-permissions@ieee.org. By choosing to view this document, you agree to all provisions of the copyright laws protecting it. Author(s)Matteo

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Purpose: Hypercalciuria is one of the risk factors for calcium kidney stone formation (the most common type of urinary stones). Although vitamin D deficiency is prevalent among urolithiasis patients, the effect of vitamin D supplementation on urine calcium in these patients is still unclear. Materials and Methods: In this retrospective study, medical and laboratory tests records of 26 patients with recurrent calcium kidney stones and vitamin D deficiency treated with 50000IU vitamin D per week for 8-12 weeks were analyzed. The changes in 24-hour urine calcium (24-h Ca), serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25 (OH) D), serum parathormone (PTH), other 24-hour urine metabolites and calculated relative supersaturations of calcium oxalate (CaOxSS), calcium phosphate (CaPSS) and uric acid (UASS) were assessed. Moreover, correlations between changes in 24-h Ca and other aforementioned variables were assessed. Results: Serum 25 (OH) D and 24-h Ca increased after vitamin D supplementation, while serum PTH decreased (p < 0.001, for all analyses). The levels of 24-hour urine sodium and urea increased significantly (p = 0.005 and p = 0.031, respectively). The levels of CaOxSS and CaPSS increased, but the changes were not significant (p = 0.177, and p = 0.218, respectively). There were no correlations between the changes in 24-h Ca and serum 25 (OH) D or PTH. Conclusions: The result of current study suggests that although urine Ca increased in vitamin D supplemented patients, this increase was not associated with the increase in serum vitamin D and may be due to other factors such as dietary factors. Further randomized clinical trials considering other factors associated with urine Ca are warranted.