Abstract Alcohol has been widely consumed for centuries and is linked to the
aggravation of
diseases. Several studies have shown that excessive
consumption of
ethanol results in morphophysiological changes in the
male reproductive system. One of the effects of
ethanol is the decrease in
testosterone concentration and hormonal
therapies are an alternative to minimize the changes resulting from chronic
alcoholism. Qualitative studies were commonly carried out to evaluate the
male histopathological alterations resulting from
ethanol consumption, being necessary quantitative and non-subjective
techniques. This study analyzes the importance of
fractal analysis as a useful tool to identify and quantify
tissue remodeling in
rats submitted to
ethanol consumption and
hormone therapy with
testosterone.
Prostate of
animals submitted to chronic
ethanol consumption showed
tissue disorganization, which was confirmed by an increasing of
fractal dimension. Regarding the prostatic stroma,
collagen fractal dimension and quantification revealed lower values in
animals that were only submitted to
androgen therapy. Thus, we can conclude that the
fractal analysis was a useful tool to quantify
tissue changes caused by
ethanol consumption and
androgen therapy.