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The authors analyzed the concentration of malonic dialdehyde (MDA) in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of children with intracranial hypertension. For the control group an intracranial pressure (ICP) of 250 mm H2O was taken as a reference point. The concentration of MDA was determined by a method using thiobarbituric acid. In a group of children with ICP values greater than the limiting value, the concentration of malonic dialdehyde was 0.629 mmol/mg protein, while in the control group with an ICP below 250 mm H2O, this value was 0.610 mmol/mg protein. The differences between the two groups were not statistically significant. from the results obtained it can be concluded that the concentration of MDA, as an isolated parameter, does not constitute a good measure of intensity of the lipid peroxidation processes in central nervous system (CNS) tissues, taken as an indicator of their disintegration in cases of hydrocephalus with intracranial hypertension.

Amniotic fluid elastolytic activity was assessed in a group of 120 women who delivered preterm infants and in 35 women who delivered at term. Amniotic fluid elastolytic activity decreases as pregnancy progresses. The lecithin-to-sphingomyelin (L/S) ratio in women's amniotic fluid was determined by the method developed by Gluck and associates [6] and elastolytic activity by that developed by Mehdi and associates. A significant negative correlation was found between the amniotic fluid L/S ratio and amniotic fluid elastolytic activity (r = -0.932; p < 0.001). The border value of elastolytic activity that indicates lung maturity (L/S ratio equal to or greater than 2) is 2.01 +/- 0.05 mmol/min ml. In the amniotic elastolytic activity test, it is the value that differentiates mature from immature lungs. The amniotic fluid elastolytic activity test is characterized by high sensitivity (91.43%) and specificity (91.67%), high positive prognostic value (76.19%) and low negative prognostic value (2.65%). The test parameters do not therefore differ greatly from those of the Gluck test. Moreover, the amniotic fluid elastolytic activity test is cheaper and takes less time to perform.

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