Estimation of bone turnover in climacteric women by the whole body retention of fluoride.

This paper reports the measurement of whole body retention using fluoride (WBRF) as an estimator of skeletal turnover in a group of climacteric women that received an oral dose of 700 mumol of sodium fluoride. WBRF is defined as 100(1-(urinary fluoride/fluoride load)). WBRF was significantly correlated with whole body retention of 99m-Tc-methylene-diphosphonate, the serum levels of the bone alkaline phosphatase and the urinary excretion of hydroxyproline. WBRF values ranged from 20% to 95% and were affected by calcium intake and the urinary calcium excretion. In normal subjects with high turnover, the measurement of serum alkaline phosphatase activity and/or urinary hydroxyproline excretion helps to distinguish these cases from patients with metabolic bone diseases due to metastases, Paget disease, etc. The fact that the fraction of fluoride not incorporated into bone is not further metabolized plus the accuracy, preciseness and rapidity of fluoride measurements in urine are the main advantages of this technique.

[Retroperitoneal liposarcoma. Clinico-pathological analysis of 6 cases]. / Liposarcoma retroperitoneal. Análisis clínico patológico de 6 casos.

Six patients with retroperitoneal liposarcoma are reported. Their mean age was 58,66 years. There were four males and two females. The symptoms or signs at presentation were: abdominal mass (5 cases); abdominal pain (3 cases); sustained fever (2 cases), and lower limb edema (1 case). Abdominal computed tomography (CT) showed large masses with different density. Distant metastases were not documented. All patients underwent laparotomy, and the tumor was not resectable in 2 cases. In the histological study, liposarcoma was shown to be myxoid in 4 cases, pleomorphic in one and round cell type in the remaining case. In 3 patients local relapse was observed. The longest survival was 38 months and the shortest one 3 months. It was concluded that the leading cause for consultation in these patients was an abdominal mass. Remarkably, two patients had the uncommon feature of sustained tumoral fever. CT was shown to be the most useful diagnostic method. The good general condition of the patients with large tumoral masses was remarkable. The most common variety was myxoid, local relapse was frequent and the survival was poor.