Ameliorating effects of curcumin on nicotine-induced mice testes.

BACKGROUND/AIM: The aim of this study was to determine the antioxidative effect of curcumin on nicotine-induced mice testis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty Swiss albino male mice were divided into five groups, each containing 12 mice. The first group was used as a control. To induce toxicity in the second and third group, nicotine (0.4 mg/kg/day) was injected intraperitoneally into mice for 14 and 28 days, respectively. The mice in the fourth and fifth group were injected with nicotine (0.4 mg/kg/day) and orally treated with curcumin (200 mg/kg) for 14 and 28 days, respectively. Testosterone levels were measured from blood samples and testis tissues were examined under light and electron microscopes. RESULTS: Light and electron microscopic examinations of the nicotine-induced groups showed evident degenerations in spermatogenic cells, Sertoli cells, and Leydig cells. The groups treated with curcumin had less testicular alterations. The mice that were sacrificed after 28 days in the groups treated with curcumin showed minor degenerations. Furthermore, the median levels of testosterone significantly decreased in the nicotine-induced groups in comparison with those in the control group. CONCLUSION: The results indicated that curcumin might be a potential therapeutic agent for testicular injury caused by nicotine addiction.

Effects of Long-term Administration of the Antiaging Hormone Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate on Rat Prostates and Testes as Androgen-Dependent Organs.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine the effects of the long-term use of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) on rat prostates and testes as well as on serum testosterone and DHEAS levels. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty male rats aged 4 to 5 months were studied. A DHEAS suspension of 5 mg/kg per rat was administered orally to the 15 rats in the experimental group 5 times a week, whereas saline was administered concurrently to the 15 rats in the control group. Intracardiac blood samples were drawn to determine hormone levels, and histological samples of prostate and testes were evaluated under light microscopy. RESULTS: At the end of the 6-month study period, histological examinations performed on prostate preparations showed that the atrophy score of the experimental group was significantly lower than the scores of the sham and control groups (p<0.001 and p<0.001, respectively). The serum total testosterone and DHEAS levels of the rats in the study group were significantly increased (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: In our study, we determined that the long-term use of DHEAS does not have any detrimental effects on the prostate or the testis; on the contrary, it protects the prostate from atrophy, which is imperative for the continuation of fertility as well as for increasing serum testosterone and DHEAS levels.

An evaluation of the effects of long-term cell phone use on the testes via light and electron microscope analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether the low-intensity electromagnetic waves transmitted by cell phones cause histopathological or ultrastructural changes in the testes of rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Wistar-Kyoto male rats were placed into either a control group or a group that was exposed to an electromagnetic field (EMF). Two cell phones with Specific Absorbation Rate values of 1.58 were placed and left off in cages that housed 15 rats included in the control group, and four cell phones were placed and left on in cages that housed 30 rats included in the experimental group. After 3 months, weights, seminiferous tubule diameters, and spermatogenic cell conditions of all testes of the rats were evaluated. One half of each testis was examined also under an electron microscope. RESULTS: No significant differences were observed between the testis weights, seminiferous tubule diameters, and histopathological evaluations between rats that had and had not been exposed to EMF. Electron microscope analysis revealed that the membrana propria thickness and the collagen fiber contents were increased and the capillary veins extended in the experimental group. Common vacuolization in the cytoplasm of the Sertoli cells, growth of electron-dense structures, and existence of large lipid droplets were noted as the remarkable findings of this study. CONCLUSION: Although the cells that had been exposed to long-term, low-dose EMF did not present any findings that were contrary to the control conditions, the changes observed during ultrastructural examination gave the impression that significant changes may occur if the study period were to be extended. Longer studies are needed to better understand the effects of EMFs on testis tissue.

Laparoscopic pyeloplasty in adults: stented versus stentless.

INTRODUCTION: In this study, we aimed to investigate the efficacy and feasibility of stentless laparoscopic pyeloplasty (LP), compared with the stented counterpart. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We compared the results of stented and stentless LP procedures performed at two centers. The indications included symptoms such as loin pain or urinary tract infection with documented obstruction on renal scintigraphy. Transperitoneal approach was standard for both techniques. The stented and stentless patient groups were compared with regard to surgical duration, length of hospital stay, postoperative symptomatology, complications, and radiologic and scintigraphic findings. RESULTS: Twenty-seven patients with stentless pyeloplasty with at least 6 months of follow-up were included in the study and compared with a matched group of 21 stented LP patients. All had Anderson-Hynes dismembered pyeloplasty. Mean operative time was 151.9 minutes and 144.6 minutes in the stented and stentless groups, respectively (p > 0.05). Mean drain removal time and hospital stay were 1.9 days (range: 1-9 days) and 3.4 days (range: 2-9 days) in the stented group, respectively, and 2 days (range: 1-10 days) and 3.1 days (range: 1-10 days) in the stentless group, respectively (p > 0.05). Renal scintigraphy studies improved in 14 patients in the stented group and in 22 patients in the stentless group during the 6-month follow-up. Symptoms completely resolved in 19 of the stented and in 24 of the stentless cases. CONCLUSION: Stentless LP is a feasible technique as its stented counterpart. Although it has a relatively high prolonged leakage risk, it could be performed without compromising the success rate by experienced surgeons.

Pediatric transumbilical laparoendoscopic single-site nephroureterectomy: initial report.

OBJECTIVE: To present a case of laparoendoscopic single-site surgery (LESS) nephroureterectomy (NUx), a type of embroyonic natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery, which is one of the recent innovations in the era of laparoscopy, in a child. METHODS: A 10-year-old girl underwent left nephroureterectomy by LESS due to end-stage reflux nephropathy on December 25, 2008. The surgery is performed transperitoneally, through a 2-cm semicircular incision in the left inner curve of the umbilicus using three 5-mm trocars. NUx with LESS was performed duplicating standard laparoscopic steps with the help of flexible and straight laparoscopic instruments. RESULTS: Operation time was 140 minutes and the blood loss was minimal. There was no intraoperative or postoperative complication. The patient was discharged at the 24th postoperative hour. The postoperative cosmetic result was excellent as the incision scar was hidden inside the belly button. CONCLUSIONS: NUx with LESS is a feasible technique with the advantages of less pain, shortened convalescence, improved cosmesis, and absence of wound complications in children. However, clear indications of LESS in children remain to be clarified.

Effects of vas deferens obstruction on Cajal-like cells in rats.

OBJECTIVE: Cajal cells have been defined as pacemakers in the gastrointestinal tract, and have recently been reported in the urogenital tract. In this study, the effects of experimental obstruction of the vas deferens on Cajal-like cells in rats were investigated. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Ninety rats were divided into study (S), sham-operated (SH) and control (C) groups. The vasa deferentia were removed at the beginning of the study in the C group and in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd months after distal vas deferens ligation in the SH and S groups (S1, S2 and S3 consecutively). The sections stained with c-kit antibody were studied under a light microscope to determine the number and morphology of Cajal-like cells in the submucosal and muscular layers. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences between the C, S1 and S2 groups despite a higher mean in S1. The decrease in the mean values for the submucosal and muscular layers in S3 was statistically significant compared to the C group. No morphologically significant difference was detected under a light microscope after obstruction. CONCLUSIONS: The increase in Cajal-like cells in the early phase, although insignificant, might be associated with increased motility to overcome the obstruction, whereas the significant decrease in the late phase might be a sign of disordered motility.

Complications of pneumatic ureterolithotripsy in the early postoperative period.

PURPOSE: To document the perioperative and early postoperative complications of pneumatic ureterolithotripsy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Between January 1997 and December 2003, pneumatic ureterolithotripsy was performed in 665 male and 314 female patients for stones >0.5 cm. The age range was 9 months to 72 years (mean 41 years). Preoperatively, intravenous urography, urinalysis, and urine culture were done. Cefepime 1 g was given as prophylactic antimicrobial therapy 1 hour prior to surgery. A plain film of the urinary tract was taken immediately before the procedure. The operations were carried out with the patient under general anesthesia. Rigid ureteroscopes (6.9F ACMI "micro-6" or 8F-10F Storz) and the Vibrolith (Elmed, Ankara, Turkey) pneumatic lithotripter were used. The fragments were extracted with forceps or baskets. Urinalysis and culture as a routine postoperative evaluation and a plain film or ultrasonogram of the urinary tract when needed were done 1 week after the procedure. RESULTS: The stones were completely removed in 847 patients (86.5%); 783 (80%) of them went home on the day of surgery. A ureteral stent was needed in 401 patients (41.0%). Perioperative complications were migration of the stone into the kidney in 70 patients (7.2%), mucosal damage in 34 (3.5%), ureteral perforation in 17 (1.7%), ureteral avulsion in 4 (0.4%), and conversion to open surgery in 3 (0.2%). During the early postoperative period, flank pain (18.4%), pelvic discomfort (5.5%), macroscopic hematuria (7.3%), and urinary tract infection (5%) were recorded. CONCLUSION: Ureterolithotripsy by a pneumatic lithotripter is a minimally invasive, highly tolerable procedure with a low complication rate and short hospital stay when performed meticulously with appropriate instruments.

Comparison of fine-needle aspiration and open biopsy of testis in sperm retrieval and histopathologic diagnosis.

This study aimed to compare the diagnostic value of testicular fine-needle aspiration (FNA) with open biopsy in infertile males with azoospermia or severe oligozoospermia and to evaluate the reliability of testicular sperm extraction by FNA. A total of 76 testes of 40 patients, 34 with azoospermia, four oligozoospermia and two patients who underwent orchidectomy as a result of cancer of prostate were included. Detailed clinical and laboratory examinations were performed and two semen analyses were obtained from each patient. A 20-ml 26 gauge 13-mm needle was used for FNA and smears were stained with May-Grunwald-Giemsa and Papanicolaou stain. An open biopsy was performed in each patient after FNA and the samples were stained with haematoxylen-eosin. Smears and histological stains were examined and compared under light microscopy by the same pathologist. In 69 of the 76 testes (90%) FNA cytology results agreed with the histology. In four testes, the aspirate was unsatisfactory and in three testes, spermatocytic arrest was found cytologically while subsequent biopsies revealed diffuse fibrosis. In 15 of 16 patients (93.7%) with normal and hypospermatogenesis, spermatozoa had been extracted by FNA. Spermatozoa could not be obtained after neither FNA nor open biopsy in the remaining 24 patients. Testicular FNA in infertile males is a simple, reliable and minimally invasive diagnostic tool. It is as effective as open biopsy for testicular sperm extraction and good results can be achieved in experienced hands.

Prevalence and correlates of erectile dysfunction in Turkey: a population-based study.

OBJECTIVES: Epidemiologic data indicate that erectile dysfunction (ED) is a significant problem among men worldwide. However, data do not exist for Turkish men. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence and sociodemographic, medical, and lifestyle correlates of ED in Turkey. METHODS: Information was gathered via physician-conducted interviews using a validated questionnaire. Respondents self-rated their ED as "none," "minimal," "moderate," or "severe". Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed on data from a stratified random sample of 1982 men aged > or = 40 years to quantify the associations between ED and potential covariates. RESULTS: The age-adjusted overall prevalence of ED in Turkey was 69.2% (mild 33.2%, moderate 27.5%, severe 8.5%) and increased with age, as did severity of ED. When we consider moderate + severe ED cases, the prevalence is 36%. In a multivariate model, increased prevalence of moderate or severe ED was significantly associated with age, residence in eastern Turkey; low educational level; unemployment; or underlying diabetes, hypertension, depression, prostate problems or lower urinary tract symptoms. Conversely, residence in southern Turkey, alcohol consumption, physical activity, and higher income were significantly associated with decreased prevalence. CONCLUSIONS: ED affects a high proportion of Turkish men aged > or = 40 years, is correlated with a number of serious medical conditions and the frequency increases with age.