Protective Effect of All-Trans Retinoic Acid in Cisplatin-Induced Testicular Damage in Rats

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) in cisplatin (CP)-induced testicular damage in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-eight male Wistar rats were divided into four groups: Control, ATRA alone, ATRA+CP, and CP alone. Body weight, testicular weight, sperm count, sperm motility, percentage of abnormal sperm, total antioxidant status (TAS), total oxidant status (TOS), oxidative stress index (OSI) in testicular tissue, and testicular histopathology were compared among groups. RESULTS: The sperm count and motility significantly decreased and the percentage of abnormal sperm significantly increased in the CP group compared to the control and ATRA groups. CP+ATRA administration significantly increased the sperm count and motility, but reduced the abnormal sperm count. CP administration significantly increased TOS and OSI compared to the control group and the other groups. Administering CP+ATRA significantly decreased TOS and the OSI in testicular tissue and reduced spermatogenesis, but increased the Johnsen score. CONCLUSIONS: The destructive effects of CP treatment on testicular tissue and spermatogenesis were reduced by administering ATRA.

Actual medical management of stone diseases in pediatric population

Although the prevalence of urolithiasis is nearly 2 - 3% in childhood, the risk of recurrence may range between 6.5 - 54%. There has been an increase in stone disease in the pediatric age groups. The stone disease in children has multifactorial etiology. After the diagnosis, detailed metabolic evaluation is required. High recurrence rates, therapeutic irregularities and deficiency in diagnosis may lead to co-morbidities such as loss of kidney. After the exact diagnosis, surgical options such as stone extraction and correction of the anatomical anomalies come into question. Besides these, medical and supportive treatments are needed for preventing recurrence, urinary infection and, preserving renal function. Supportive care includes increased fluid intake and dietary modifications. Medical treatment depends on the cause of urinary stone disease. Morbidities of pediatric urolithiasis can be prevented by early diagnosis, detailed metabolic analysis, regular follow- up and medical treatment protocols

Are Spinal or Paraspinal Anatomic Markers Helpful for Vertebral Numbering and Diagnosing Lumbosacral Transitional Vertebrae?

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the value of spinal and paraspinal anatomic markers in both the diagnosis of lumbosacral transitional vertebrae (LSTVs) and identification of vertebral levels on lumbar MRI. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Lumbar MRI from 1049 adult patients were studied. By comparing with the whole-spine localizer, the diagnostic errors in numbering vertebral segments on lumbar MRI were evaluated. The morphology of S1-2 disc, L5 and S1 body, and lumbar spinous processes (SPs) were evaluated by using sagittal MRI. The positions of right renal artery (RRA), superior mesenteric artery, aortic bifurcation (AB) and conus medullaris (CM) were described. RESULTS: The diagnostic error for evaluation of vertebral segmentation on lumbar MRI alone was 14.1%. In lumbarization, all patients revealed a well-formed S1-2 disc with squared S1 body. A rhombus-shaped L5 body in sacralization and a rectangular-shaped S1 body in lumbarization were found. The L3 had the longest SP. The most common sites of spinal and paraspinal structures were: RRA at L1 body (53.6%) and L1-2 disc (34.1%), superior mesenteric artery at L1 body (55.1%) and T12-L1 disc (31.6%), and AB at L4 body (71.1%). CM had variable locations, changing from the T12-L1 disc to L2 body. They were located at higher sacralization and lower lumbarization. CONCLUSION: The spinal morphologic features and locations of the spinal and paraspinal structures on lumbar MRI are not completely reliable for the diagnosis of LSTVs and identification on the vertebral levels.

Evaluation of Aqueductal Patency in Patients with Hydrocephalus: Three-Dimensional High-Sampling-Efficiency Technique (SPACE) versus Two-Dimensional Turbo Spin Echo at 3 Tesla

OBJECTIVE: To compare the accuracy of diagnosing aqueductal patency and image quality between high spatial resolution three-dimensional (3D) high-sampling-efficiency technique (sampling perfection with application optimized contrast using different flip angle evolutions [SPACE]) and T2-weighted (T2W) two-dimensional (2D) turbo spin echo (TSE) at 3-T in patients with hydrocephalus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study included 99 patients diagnosed with hydrocephalus. T2W 3D-SPACE was added to the routine sequences which consisted of T2W 2D-TSE, 3D-constructive interference steady state (CISS), and cine phase-contrast MRI (PC-MRI). Two radiologists evaluated independently the patency of cerebral aqueduct and image quality on the T2W 2D-TSE and T2W 3D-SPACE. PC-MRI and 3D-CISS were used as the reference for aqueductal patency and image quality, respectively. Inter-observer agreement was calculated using kappa statistics. RESULTS: The evaluation of the aqueductal patency by T2W 3D-SPACE and T2W 2D-TSE were in agreement with PC-MRI in 100% (99/99; sensitivity, 100% [83/83]; specificity, 100% [16/16]) and 83.8% (83/99; sensitivity, 100% [67/83]; specificity, 100% [16/16]), respectively (p < 0.001). No significant difference in image quality between T2W 2D-TSE and T2W 3D-SPACE (p = 0.056) occurred. The kappa values for inter-observer agreement were 0.714 for T2W 2D-TSE and 0.899 for T2W 3D-SPACE. CONCLUSION: Three-dimensional-SPACE is superior to 2D-TSE for the evaluation of aqueductal patency in hydrocephalus. T2W 3D-SPACE may hold promise as a highly accurate alternative treatment to PC-MRI for the physiological and morphological evaluation of aqueductal patency.

Giant Vertebral Notochordal Rest: Magnetic Resonance and Diffusion Weighted Imaging Findings

A giant vertebral notochordal rest is a newly described, benign entity that is easily confused with a vertebral chordoma. As microscopic notochordal rests are rarely found in adult autopsies, the finding of a macroscopic vertebral lesion is a new entity with only seven previously presented cases. We report here radiological findings, including diffusion weighted images, of a patient with a giant notochordal remnant confined to the L5 vertebra, with an emphasis on its distinction from a chordoma.