The pH of Drinking Water and Its Effect on the pH of Urine.

AIM: The aim was to determine whether urine pH changed or not with different pH values of drinking water. With the results obtained from animal studies, comments can be made about the effect of water with different pH levels that people drink on kidney stones. METHOD: A total of 24 Wistar Albino rats were divided into three groups containing eight rats each: the first group was given water with pH 5.5, the second group was given water with pH 7 and the third group was given water with pH 8.2 in the same environment and conditions during 13 days. All rats consumed water in line with their natural feeding habits. All rats had urine pH measurements performed and recorded every day at the same time. The groups were later compared in terms of daily pH values. RESULTS: When daily urine pH values were compared, there were statistically significant differences between pH measurements on the first, fourth and seventh day (p=0.02, p=0.017 and p=0.007, respectively). When first-day values are compared with post-hoc analyses, the urine pH in Group 2 was identified to be lower compared to Group 1 and Group 3 (p<0.001). When the fourth-day values were assessed, the urine pH of Group 2 was observed to be higher than Group 1 and Group 3 (p<0.001). On the seventh day, Group 3 had higher urine pH compared to the other groups (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: The variation in drinking water pH does not directly change urine pH; however, it causes a change in the urine pH on different days.

Is Medical Therapy for Distal Ureteral Stones Efficient? Tamsulosin versus Deflazacort: A Prospective Randomised Trial.

INTRODUCTION: To evaluate the efficacy of tamsulosin and deflazacort in the spontaneous expulsion of distal ureteral stones when applied in an independent or combined manner. METHODS: 134 patients with distal ureteral stones (4 - 10 mm) were included in tothe study. All patients were randomized into four groups: group 1 (n = 37) patients receiving tamsulosin (0.4 mg/day); group 2 (n = 26) patients receiving deflazacort (30 mg/day); group 3 (n = 37) patients receiving combined treatment (tamsulosin and deflazacort) with the same dosages; and group 4, control group cases (n = 34), receiving paracetamol on demand. Although deflazacort treatment was limited to 10 days due to the possible associated side effects, α-blocker and paracetamol lasted up to four weeks. Patients were followed up on a weekly basis and at the end of four weeks all groups were compared primarily with respect to the stone expulsion rates. RESULTS: No statistically significant difference was noted between all groups regarding the age, sex, or stone burden (p > 0.05). Spontaneous stone expulsion rates after 4 weeks were 64.8 %, 69.2 %, 75.7 %, and 26.4 % in group 1, 2, 3, and 4 respectively. Spontaneous passage rates were statistically higher in all treatment groups when compared with the control group. Despite the highest spontaneous stone expulsion rate noted in group 3; this difference was not statistically significant when compared with the group 1 and 2. No major side effect related to the medications was observed. CONCLUSIONS: Tamsulosin facilitated the spontaneous passage of distal ureteral stones < 10 mm in size in an effective manner particularly when applied in combination with an oral corticosteroid.

Age and sex do not affect first year recurrence in patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Although demographic heterogeneity in the management of patients with non-muscle invasive bladder tumor (NMIBT) is an important factor, there are only minimal evidence-based recommendations that adjust for patient age and gender. The relationship and impact of age and gender on the recurrence in NBIMT is poorly investigated and understood. AIM: The aim of the study was to evaluate the impact of age and sex on the recurrence of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients treated with transurethral resection (TUR) of primary NMIBT were included in the study. Risk calculation was made according to the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) risk tables. Prognostic factors for predicting tumor recurrence up to 5 years including age and sex were analyzed. The Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison of non-parametric variables in independent groups. Kaplan-Meier method, with log rank (Mantel-Cox) analyses applied for comparison of mean duration of remission by sex and age, was used to calculate mean duration of remission. Results: A total of 81 patients, 68 males (mean age 59.03 years) and 13 females (mean age 58.13 years) were eligible for final analysis. Mean survival time of patients.

Factors affecting the diagnosis of prostate cancer through 12 quadrant guided prostate biopsy.

PURPOSE: Investigate the factors affecting the efficacy of the widely used 12-quadrant prostate biopsy for the diagnosis of prostate cancer. METHODS: The data of 1846 male patients between 45 and 75 years of age was evaluated. The patients were subdivided into groups according to age, blood prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels prostate volume (PV), digital rectal examination (DRE) findings, and pathology results. The tumour detection rates in the 12-quadrant biopsies were compared with PV, PSA levels, and DRE results of the grouped patients. RESULTS: The tumour detection rate decreased with increasing PV in patients 45-75 years of age and with a PSA level ≤ 14.5. No decrease was detected in patients 45-60 years of age or those aged 61-75 years with a PSA ≤ 6.99 and suspicious DRE findings. A decrease in the tumour detection rate with increasing PV was observed in the other three subgroups of patients in this age group, who had a PSA ≤ 6.99, and normal DRE findings but a PV ≤ 40, PV 41-80, or PV ≥ 81. CONCLUSIONS: Even though there is no statistically significant relationship between PV and the prostate cancer detection rate in patients 45-60 years of age, the cancer detection rate decreased with increasing PV in three of the four subgroups of patients between the ages of 61 and 75 years. Our study results have demonstrated that an individualised approach can play an important role in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer.

Endothelin-1 Level in Patients with Simple Renal Cyst.

INTRODUCTION: Endothelin-1 (ET-1) is potent vasoconstrictive peptide and elevated ET-1 levels are associated with hypertension, endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerosis. Research on (ET-1) has demonstrated that elevated ET-1 levels in autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease leads to systemic hypertension. The prevalence of simple renal cysts increases with age and the association with simple renal cyst and hypertension is not clear. The aim of this study was to investigate the ET-1 levels in patients with simple renal cyst and compare them with those in healthy adults. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included patients that underwent laparoscopic renal cyst decortication in the Department of Urology and healthy controls. Serum and urinary ET-1 levels were measured before surgery and one month after it in the patients with simple renal cyst. Serum ET-1 levels were measured in healthy adult patients. Ambulatory blood pressure was measured in all patients. Glomerular filtration rate was measured according to the chronic kidney disease epidemiology collaboration formula. RESULTS: Thirty-two patients were included in the present study. Of these, 16 patients with simple renal cyst were allocated into group 1 and 16 healthy patients - in group 2. There was no significant difference between systolic and diastolic blood pressure between the groups (. CONCLUSIONS: The present study demonstrated that serum EL-1 level in patients with simple renal cyst was lower than that in healthy people. Further studies are needed to investigate the EL-1 levels in simple renal cyst patients.

Current radiological techniques used to evaluate unilateral partial ureteral obstruction: an experimental rabbit study.

AIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate functional and prognostic benefits of Doppler ultrasonography (DU), diuretic renal scintigraphy (DRS), and magnetic resonance urography (MRU) during diagnosis and follow-up of ureteropelvic junction obstruction (UPJO) and to examine apoptosis rates caused by UPJO in an experimental rabbit model. METHOD: Twenty-four rabbits were divided randomly into two groups. The left kidneys of 15 rabbits from the first group underwent Ulm-Miller surgery to create UPJO, whereas the left kidneys of nine rabbits from the second group underwent sham surgery. A pressure flow study (Whitaker's test) was done during postoperative week 6. Based on the Whitaker test, the DU, DRS, and MRU findings were compared. The number of apoptotic renal cells was counted after death. RESULT: The Whitaker test run during postoperative week 6 revealed obstructions in 15 rabbits from group 1; the nine rabbits of the sham group had no obstructions. Sensitivity and specificity of DRS were 93.3 and 88.8 %, respectively, and those of MRU were 93.3 and 88.8 %, respectively. The postoperative mean RI values were significantly higher than the preoperative values, associated with sensitivity of 86.6 % and specificity of 77.5 % for detecting UPJO. DRS, MRU, and RI could not predict UPJO in one (8 %), one (8 %), and two (16 %) kidneys, respectively. Likelihood ratio (LR) was 8.4 for MRU and scintigraphy, while for RI, LR was 3.9. Pathology specimens revealed that all kidneys with UPJO underwent apoptosis, and the number of apoptotic cells was significantly higher on the UPJO-created side than on the contralateral and in the sham group (p < 0.05). No test predicted all apoptosis related to UPJO. CONCLUSION: The RI, DRS, and DMRU results correlated with the pressure flow results for detecting UPJO. No single radiological technique predicted all initial UPJO-created kidneys that concluded with apoptosis. Further studies are required to seek with better methods for diagnosing an obstruction or to define a combination of radiological techniques aiding in the management decision.

Case Report of a Man With Sertoli Cell Only, Transverse Testicular Ectopia, and External Auditory Canal Atresia.

Transverse testicular ectopia (TTE) is an uncommon congenital anomaly, reported mostly as pediatric case reports. Herewith we report a 43-year old man presenting with sertoli cell only, Transverse testicular ectopia and external auditory canal atresia.