Spatial and Temporal Variation in Competitive Effects on Soil Moisture and Pine Response.

The effects of different plant life-forms, including a bunch grass species, Andropogon virginicus L. (broomsedge), and a sprouting deciduous tree species, Liquidambar styraciflua L. (sweetgum), on soil moisture and competitive responses of a transplanted coniferous tree seedling, Pinus taeda L. (loblolly pine), were investigated. Addition of the bunch grass and/or hardwood sprouts either had no effect or increased soil moisture in the surface soil (0-14 cm) depending on the time, while addition of sweetgum and/or broomsedge (greatest density alone) decreased soil moisture in deeper portions of the solum during the summer months. Soil moisture available to pine seedlings at various points in time was assessed by measuring predawn xylem pressure potential. Temporal variation in predawn xylem pressure potential was accounted for through a water stress integral approach. More than half of the variation in pine size after one growing season could be accounted for by the water stress integral.

Response of total tannins and phenolics in loblolly pine foliage exposed to ozone and acid rain.

Tannin and total phenolic levels in the foliage of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) were examined in order to evaluate the effect of atmospheric pollution on secondary plant metabolism. The trees were exposed to four ozone concentrations and three levels of simulated acid rain. Tannin concentration (quantity per gram) and content (quantity per fascicle) were increased in foliage exposed to high concentrations of ozone in both ozone-sensitive and ozone-tolerant families. No effect of acid rain on tannins was observed. Neither total phenolic concentration nor content was significantly affected by any treatment, indicating that the ozone-related increase in foliar tannins was due to changes in allocation within the phenolic group rather than to increases in total phenolics. The change in allocation of resources in the production of secondary metabolites may have implications in herbivore defense, as well as for the overall energy balance of the plant.

Palliative urinary diversion in patients with advanced pelvic malignancy.

The survival patterns of 90 patients with advanced pelvic malignancy and bilateral ureteral obstruction treated with urinary diversion are reviewed. Cell type, presence or absence of prior treatment, or degree of renal decompensation had no specific correlation with length of survival. The youngest age group ranging from 27 to 49 years had a significantly shorter survival than the remainder of the patients. In patients who received prior treatment, an increasing time interval from original diagnosis of malignancy to diversion was associated with a longer median survival. Thirty patients lived six months or more after surgery and spent an average of 14% of their remaining life in the hospital. Guidelines for selection of patients who might benefit from urinary diversion are presented.

Palliative urinary diversion in carcinoma of the cervix.

Over a 28-year period, 46 patients with previously treated carcinoma of the cervix developed bilateral ureteral obstruction that was treated with palliative urinary diversion. All but 3 patients had elevated blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels, and 19 had received no prior treatment. Forty-one percent (19/46) lived 6 months or more and spent 86% of their remaining life out of the hospital. Various factors potentially affecting survival are examined, and guidelines for patient selection are offered.

Adenocarcinoma of the endometrium in pregnancy.

Adenocarcinoma of the endometrium with intrauterine pregnancy is extremely rare. This report presents the finding of an adenoacanthoma of the endometrium discovered during therapeutic abortion and compares it with 6 other cases previously published. Four of the 7 tumors were adenocanthomas, a neoplasm that accounts for 20-30% of endometrial adenocarcinoma in the general population. Follow-up on 4 of the 6 previously reported patients indicates that 3 are well more than 5 years after diagnosis. The 1 patient who died of disease had an adenoacanthoma and was the only patient with extensive myometrial invasion at hysterectomy. The patient described in the present report is well 2 1/2 years after hysterectomy.

Carcinoma of the vulva. A reassessment.

A recent reassessment of the combined experience in treating vulvar cancer at the Pondville State Cancer Hospital and the Massachusetts General Hospital has been undertaken, covering the 25 years that have elapsed since an earlier comprehensive review was carried out. A few differences in some of the clinical features of the disease and the manner in which it presents itself today were observed. Basic principles of management that had emerged at the time of the earlier report have remained fundamentally the same. However, as the result of a recent trend toward earlier diagnosis that permits prompt treatment of smaller lesions with a lower potential for having had lymphatic spread at the time they are dealt with, there is now room for a somewhat greater degree of careful individualization of the basic surgical approach. This philosophy has been reflected in certain modifications of the overall plan of management as well as in improvements in the technical aspects of diagnosis and therapy that have reduced complications and increased salvage.

Urinary stress incontinence: differential diagnosis, pathophysiology, and management.

It is appropriate to introduce this review of the subject of urinary stress incontinence with a discussion of other disorders that may produce abdnormal urinary leakage,at times even stimulating true anatomic stress incontinence. It is obviously important to correctly identify patients with these other conditions and not perform surgical procedures unlikely to relieve their symptoms. Thereafter, the underlying pathophysiology of stress incontinence is considered in detail, since its fundamental understanding serves as the basis for both accurate diagnosis and proper selection and effective execution of the operations designed to correct true anatomic stress incontinence. A final section on patient management covers choice of the optimal surgical procedure for each individual patient, end results that should be achievable by proper selection and performance of the various operations, and a descriotion of some of the technical details that seem particularly helpful in carrying out the three principal types of surgical procedres currently in use.