No abstract

Plasma androgens [testosterone (T), 17beta-hydroxy-5alpha-androstan-3-one (DHT), androst-4-en-3,17 dione(A), and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA)] as well as 17 hydroxyprogesterone were measured in a group of patients (age 60-80 yrs.) with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) just before prostatectomy and compared to values obtained in subjects of similar age without signs of BPH. The most important difference was observed in the mean DHT level which was significantly (P less than 0.025) higher than in the control group; mean T and free testosterone levels in BPH patients were slightly higher (P less than 0.05) in the age group 70-80 yrs; whereas in age group 60-70 mean values were similar to those observed in normal controls. Mean A, DHEA and 17 OHP and E2 levels were not significantly different in BPH patients when compared to age matched controls. 2-5 months after prostatectomy, T and DHT levels were significantly higher than immediately preoperatively. The preoperative stress may have influenced the preprostatectomy values.

In this study evolution of plasma androgen levels in patients with advanced prostatic carcinoma, treated by either subtotal bilateral orchiectomy or estrogens, was studied in order to determine whether subcapsular orchiectomy results in complete elimination of testicular testosterone secretion and whether in subsequent months there occurs any reactivation of eventually remaining Leydig or increased adrenal androgen secretion. This study, performed on 40 patients having undergone bilateral subcapsular orchiectomy for prostatic carcinoma, shows that this intervention results in testosterone levels in the female range and that during the year following subcapsular orchiectomy there is no evidence for reactivation of Leydig cells or for increased adrenal androgen secretion as evaluated from plasma testosterone, androstenedione, and dehydroepian‐drosterone sulphate levels. In patients treated with estrogens we found no evidence for stimulation of adrenal androgen secretion, whereas in neither group of patients with prostatic carcinoma we found evidence for increased androgen levels at the time of recurrence of the carcinoma.

The analgesic effect of intravenous meptazinol at various dosage levels was studied in 30 patients suffering from acute renal colic. Out of a total of 41 injections (dose range: 20 to 120 mg.) a favourable analgesic response was recorded on 39 occasions. The onset of action was rapid with the minimun duration of action of 1 hour. Higher doses increased the drug's action but were accompanied by nausea and dizziness. There was no overall effect on blood pressure or heart rate.

A simple method is presented for demarcation between different arterial areas, which allows the performance of nephrotomies with minimal bleeding and subsequent renal ischemia. The thermal gradient that exists between the segment with occluded blood supply and the adjacent ones retaining their blood supply is defined by a liquid cholesterol crystal sheet.