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BPC 157 likely counteracts the initial event leading to hypermagnesemia and the life-threatening actions after a magnesium overdose. In contrast, a worsened clinical course, higher hypermagnesemia, and emerging hyperkalaemia might cause both L-NAME and L-arginine to affect the same events adversely. These events were also opposed by BPC 157.

We hypothesized the general anesthetic thiopental effect depending on NO‐related mechanisms, consequently counteracted by stable gastric pentadecapeptide BPC 157. (i) To determine the general anesthetic effect of thiopental and possible counteraction depending on BPC 157 administration, all rats received intraperitoneally thiopental (20, 30, 40 mg/kg) while medication (BPC 157 (10 μg/kg, 10 ng/kg, 10 pg/kg) was given intraperitoneally at 5 min before thiopental. (ii) To determine NO‐related mechanisms, all rats received intraperitoneally thiopental 40 mg/kg while BPC 157 (10 μg/kg), L‐NAME (10 mg/kg), L‐arginine (30 mg/kg) were applied alone and/or combined. BPC 157 was given at 25 min before thiopental while L‐NAME, L‐arginine, alone and/or combined, were applied at 20 min before thiopental. (i) BPC 157 (10 ng/kg and 10 μg/kg), caused significant antagonism of general anesthesia produced by thiopental with a parallel shift of the dose‐response curve to the right. (ii) L‐NAME. Thiopental‐induced anesthesia duration was tripled. L‐arginine. Active only given with L‐NAME or BPC 157: habitual thiopental anesthesia time not influenced; potentiating effects of L‐NAME lessened, not abolished; shortening effect of BPC 157: abolished. BPC 157 and L‐NAME. Potentiating effects of L‐NAME was abolished. L‐NAME and L‐arginine and BPC 157. L‐NAME+L‐arginine+BPC 157 rats exhibited values close to those in BPC 157 rats. Thiopental general anaesthesia is simultaneously manipulated in both ways with NO‐system activity modulation, L‐NAME (prolongation) and BPC 157 (shortening/counteraction). BPC 157 and L‐arginine might serve two NO‐system pathways, more or less active, alternatively activated. Grant Funding Source: Supported by Grant 108‐ 1083570‐3635, Croatia

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Objective: To investigate analgesia using lidocaine suppository for prostate biopsy.Material and methods: From 2007 to 2009, 160 patients underwent the trans-rectal ultrasound guided prostate biopsy at the Department of Urology, KBC Zagreb. Eighty patients received 60 mg lidocaine suppository intra-rectally at different time points from 15 to 120 minutes before biopsy and 80 patients received glycerine suppository as placebo. We also collected data about patient age, prostate specific antigen levels, prostate volume and pathohistological findings after the biopsy. The pain level was evaluated using a visual analogue scale (VAS).Results: There were no statistically significant differences between the groups i.e. they were similar regarding the patients' age, prostate specific antigen levels, prostate volume and the incidence of diagnosis of malignancy on biopsy. The mean pain score in the lidocaine group (3 ± 1) was significantly lower than the mean pain score in the glycerine group (4.1 ± 1.3) [p< 0.001]. A noticeable trend towards lower pain scores in the lidocaine group was observed with more time elapsed from placing the suppository till the biopsy and the optimal time for performing the biopsy starts approximately one hour after placing the suppository.Conclusion: Lidocaine suppository is an easy to use, self applicable (by the patient) and cheap method of local analgesia, with acceptable results. Possible complications related to this procedure are insignificant.