Four healthy donors provided three ejaculates on one day to deplete their sperm reserves and also after abstention periods of 1, 2, 4, 7, 10 and 14 days. The percentage of spermatozoa that were normally formed, progressively motile and which swelled in hypotonic medium remained unchanged throughout this period and the increase in total numbers of viable spermatozoa for 10 days prompted a comparison of seven donors and six oligozoospermic men. Multiple ejaculations after 10 days of abstinence for the patients with low normal, motile sperm numbers increased the total number, number of normal and number of motile spermatozoa by a mean of 230, 370 and 520%, respectively.

Methaemalbumin (MHA) was measured in 62 patients with acute pancreatitis. In 26 MHA-positive patients the occurrence of renal and pulmonary complications was 65% and 58%, respectively, compared with 3% and 6% in 36 MHA-negative patients. Fatality rate was 54% in MHA-positive and 6% in MHA-negative patients. In 17 MHA-positive cases haemorrhagic pancreatitis was proven at laparotomy or postmortem examination. Thus MHA determination proved to be a valuable diagnostic and prognostic parameter in acute pancreatitis.

The amylase to creatinine clearance ratio was found to be normal in 11 of 33 patients with acute pancreatitis. The ratio was elevated in 10 of 19 patients with renal insufficiency. Thus, it does not seem to be a specific index in the diagnosis of acute pancreatitis.

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