Estudio de fibras colágenas y elásticas del tejido conjuntivo de pacientes con y sin hernia inguinal primaria / Study of collagen and elastic fibers of connective tissue in patients with and without primary inguinal hernia

There are few studies looking for collagen matrix defects in patients with inguinal hernia. Aim: To study the skin connective tissue in patients with and without inguinal hernia. Patients and methods: Skin from the surgical wound was obtained from 23 patients with and 23 patients without inguinal hernia. The samples were processed for conventional light microscopy. Collagen fibers were stained with Van Giesson and elastic fibers with Weigert stain. Results: Patients without hernia had compact collagen tracts homogenously distributed towards the deep dermis. In contrast, patients with hernia had zones in the dermis with thinner and disaggregated collagen tracts. Connective tissue had a lax aspect in these patients. Collagen fiber density was 52% lower in patients with hernia, compared to subjects without hernia. No differences in elastic fiber density or distribution was observed between groups. Conclusions: Patients with inguinal hernia have alterations in skin collagen fiber quality and density (Rev Méd Chile 2003; 131: 1273-79).

Efecto de enzimas proteolíticas y de la abstinencia sexual en la cuantificación bioquímica de alfa glucosidasa en plasma seminal humano / Effects of proteolytic enzymes and sexual abstinence on alfa glucosidase levels in human seminal plasma

Background: a-glucosidase is found in human seminal plasma as an acid form, located in accessory glands, and as a neutral form secreted almost exclusively by the epididymis. Quantification of a-glucosidase activity is a marker of the secretory function of the epididymis and indemnity of the sperm transport pathway Aim: To obtain reference values for a-glucosidase in normal samples of seminal plasma, to evaluate its behavior in serial samples and to determine the effect of proteolytic enzymes. Material and methods: Fifty donors, with normal semen analysis according to the criteria of the World Health Organization, were evaluated. For the study with alpha-quimotrypsin, 0.1 to 10 mg/ml of the enzyme was added to the seminal plasma from a group of donors. a-glucosidase was also measured in semen obtained from nine patients at different time intervals. Results: Normal a-glucosidase values ranged from 14.52 to 25.69 µU/ml. Concentrations up to 10 mg/ml of alpha-quimotrypsin (10 times of that usually used in the liquefaction of the semen) did not alter the quantification of a-glucosidase. Serial determinations revealed oscillations in their magnitude, which stayed in each patient's characteristic range. However a subgroup presented a marked reduction of the activity of a-glucosidase as the abstinence diminished (40 percent). Conclusions: Evaluation of a-glucosidase in seminal plasma gives reliable information of the secretor state of the epididymis and especially replaces invasive methods used to evaluate the indemnity of the spermatic transport from the epididymis to the anterior urethra

Determinación de la variabilidad en la condensación de la cromatina espermática y alfa-glucosidasa seminal con relación al espermiograma / Chromatin condensation and seminal alpha glucosidase variability and their relationship to spermiogram

Background: Sperm functional tests as an addition to semen analysis have been used to study the fertilization ability of spermatozoa. Besides the usual variability of the seminal analysis an individual variability in the results of functional tests has been recently found. Aim: to evaluate in a three months period, the individual variability of sperm parameters and sperm maturation using the chromatin condensation test and epidydime a-glucosidase (that allows to discriminate obstructive processes). Material and method: The evaluation was carried out in two donors (12 samples) apparently in good health. One of them presented evident semen analysis alterations (donor 1) and the other was considered normal under the WHO standards (donor 2). Results: The averages for donor 1 were: Sperm count 24x106 sperm/ml (range 10-58x106 sperm/ml), morphology 31.8 percent (range 30-35 percent), total motility 33 percent (range 20-42 percent), sperm maturation 38 percent (range 28-78 percent), a-glucosidase 8.65 (U/ml (range 5-10 (U/ml). The averages for donor 2 were: Sperm count 96x106 sperm/ml (range 50-140x106 sperm/ml), morphology 32.2 percent (range 30-35 percent), total motility 69 percent (range 58-78 percent), sperm maturation 17 percent (range 7-30 percent), a-glucosidase 36.9 (U/ml (range 20-82 (U/ml). Conclusions: These results show that significant variations can be found in the sperm parameters and in seminal plasma a-glucosidase; however these variations are generally maintained at the normal or abnormal ranges for each individual, except the sperm morphology that was constant and with low variation in both donors. The determination of the chromatin condensation in the semen analysis gives an additional information about the grade of sperm maturation and would be of great value for differentiating between sperm samples that show similar morphology values

Uso de midodrín y congelación de semen en el tratamiento de las alteraciones del transporte espermático: caso clínico / Use of midodrine and frozen/thawed semen to treat semen transport disturbances: report of 2 cases

Retrograde ejaculation severely compromises male fertility. The use of sympathicomimetics for the treatment of this condition has poor results, except in patients with partial retrograde ejaculation, whose semen has a higher spermatozoa concentration. The semen of two patients with partial retrograde ejaculation was collected and frozen after the injection of a sympathicomimetic (Midodrine). The frozen/thawed samples were mixed with fresh semen recently ejaculated to obtain a minimal number of motile spermatozoa, and used for intrauterine insemination (> de 1 x 106 motile spermatozoa/ml). In both cases, pregnancies that developed satisfactorily, were obtained