Potassium citrate therapy significantly alleviated calcium oxalate stone activity after SWL for lower pole stones in patients who were stone free. An important observation was the beneficial effect of medical treatment on stone activity after SWL among patients with residual calculi.

From our preliminary experience, vapor-cut seems to give results comparable to those of TURP. Because there is almost no bleeding during vapor-cut, the procedure is performed under excellent visibility, which permits more rapid and effective resection.

No abstract

In 68 men with benign prostatic hyperplasia, we evaluated the association between obesity and prostatic enlargement, as well as changes in serum levels of oestradiol, testosterone, dihydroepiandrosterone and dihydroepiandrosterone sulphate. Despite the larger adenomas, no increase in the symptom score for BPH was observed with increasing obesity. Average specimen weights increased with increasingly obesity and increasing host age from 46 to 80 g. We also found the serum oestradiol level significantly elevated in obese men who were 140% or over recommended weight compared to underweight men younger than 60 years (51.3 pg/ml versus 26.8 pg/ml, p < 0.01). This pattern was present in all age groups. These results indicate that obesity is a risk factor for prostatic enlargement but not for obstruction. Also the degree of obesity appears to have a direct effect on oestradiol levels through transformation of androgens in adipose tissue to oestrogens. In conclusion, further studies to evaluate the pathogenesis, pathophysiology, natural history and symptomatology of BPH would be of great interest and should help to define better the associations that we have recognized.

Infertility may occur in patients with unilateral testicular torsion whose contralateral testis is intact. Depending on this observation, the physicians have begun to examine the contralateral testis. In the present prospective study we aimed to examine the histopathologic alterations occurring in the contralateral testicle with time. Sixty adult male albino rats were included in the programme, and following experimental torsion the histopathologic findings, especially those in the contralateral testis, were evaluated after 4-12 weeks. Long-term and high degree torsion of the testicle led to varying degrees of deterioration in the germinal epithelium and interstitial cells of the contralateral testicle. Histopathologic alterations were reversed in 12 weeks. Tubular diameter and testicular volume also decreased in accordance with the histopathologic alteration. In our opinion, orchiectomy following torsion of one testicle will limit potential histopathologic alterations in the contralateral testicle.