Treatment of renal calculi by lithotripsy: minimizing short-term shock wave induced renal damage by using antioxidants.

Treatment with extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL), the preferred method of treating kidney stones <3 cm in size, has been shown to induce silent and often self-limiting acute and chronic lesions in the kidneys and adjacent organs. We conducted a randomized clinical trial to determine whether ESWL produces ischaemia and reperfusion injury in the kidneys and whether oral administration of antioxidants reduces the degree of short-term renal injury in patients treated with ESWL. The study included 120 patients with renal stones (1-3 cm in size) treated with ESWL. The patients were divided into three groups--patients in group A (n=39) served as a control group and were not given any antioxidants; patients in group B (n=41) were given two capsules of antioxidants "Nature Made R: " 2 h before ESWL, and 2 and 8 h after ESWL; and patients in group C (n=40) were given two capsules of the antioxidants 2 and 8 h after ESWL. Double 'J' stents were inserted in patients before treatment with ESWL. Blood and urine samples were obtained from all patients just before the start of treatment with ESWL, and at 2 and 24 h and on 7th and 28th day after ESWL. Serum levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), alpha-tocopherol, cholesterol, albumin and ascorbic acid, and alpha-tocopherol/cholesterol ratio were determined. Urinary levels of albumin and beta(2) microglobulin were also determined as measures of renal tubular injury. At 24 h after ESWL, patients given antioxidants (groups B + C) had significantly reduced mean serum concentration of MDA (P<0.001); higher levels of serum ascorbic acid (P<0.001) and serum albumin (P<0.001); lower alpha-tocopherol/cholesterol ratio, lower urinary albumin and beta(2 )microglobulin levels compared with patients who did not receive antioxidants (group A). These findings suggest that treatment with ESWL generates free radicals through ischaemic/reperfusion injury mechanism, and that oral administration of antioxidant may protect these patients from short term renal injury caused by ESWL.

Reference intervals for important serum sex steroid hormones, prostate-specific antigen, insulin-like growth factor-1 and IGF binding protein-3 concentration in a normal Kuwaiti adult male population.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to determine the age-specific reference ranges for some important male sex steroid hormones, prostate-specific antigen (PSA), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), and IGF binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3), for the Kuwaiti population. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Blood samples were taken from 398 consenting, fasting, healthy Kuwaiti males aged 15-80 years between 8.00 a.m. and 12.00 noon. The serum concentrations of total testosterone (TT), dehydro-epiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), androstenedione (ADT), sex hormone binding globulin, luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), prolactin, PSA, IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 were determined. A distribution curve was plotted and age-specific reference levels were determined for each analyte. The reference interval for parameters with a normal distribution (Gaussian) was mean +/- 2 SD, while for the non-normal distribution (non-Gaussian), it was 2.5-97.5 percentile. The reference intervals for the analytes obtained from this study were compared with those suggested by the kit manufacturers and currently used by the Ministry of Health, Kuwait Laboratories (MOHKL). RESULTS: Serum IGFBP-3 and ADT had normal distribution while other analytes had non-normal distribution. The reference intervals from this study, manufacturers kit and MOHKL were as follows: TT 3-31, 9-60, 8-35 nmol/l; DHEAS 0.9-11, 1.0-7.3, 2.2- 15.2 micromol/l; ADT 0.5-4.3, 0.8-2.8, 2.0-9.2 nmol/l; LH 1-11, 0.8-7.6, 0.4-5.7 mIU/l; FSH 0.5-11, 0.7-11.1, 1.1-13.5 mIU/l; prolactin 42-397, 53-360, 80-230 nmol/l; IGF-1 41-542, 78-956, 71-261 ng/ml; IGFBP-3 88- 2,090, 900-4,000, 900-4,000 ng/ml, and PSA 0-3.1, 0-4, 0-4 ng/ml, respectively. CONCLUSION: These data indicate that for Kuwaitis lower reference ranges must be used for serum TT, DHEAS, ADT, IGFBP-3 and PSA. There is no need to change the currently used reference interval for FSH whereas higher values must be used for LH, prolactin, and IGF-1.