Penile blood cyclic guanosin monophosphate level is associated with penile Doppler ultrasound findings.

The aim of this study was to look into a molecule in penile blood sample that shows correlation with the tumescence grade and/or penile Doppler ultrasound findings. Patients admitted to urology outpatient clinic with the complaint of erectile dysfunction between November 2006 and April 2007 were evaluated. Patients with the history of phosphodiesterase inhibitor usage or genital trauma, genital abnormalities, Peyronie's disease, endocrinopathies, cardiovascular diseases and major psychiatric or neurological disorders were excluded. Those patients were later evaluated with a penile Doppler ultrasound, 10-20 min after intracavernosal injection of 60 mg of papaverine hydrochloride. Tumescence grade, peak-systolic velocity (PSV), end-diastolic velocity (EDV) and resistive index (RI) were recorded. Blood samples were drawn from penis and the levels of calcium, myeloperoxidase, malondialdehyde, nitrite, nitrate, vasoactive intestinal peptide and cyclic guanosin monophosphate (cGMP) and the activity of superoxide dismutase were measured. A total of 46 patients with erectile dysfunction were included. The median age of the patients was 49.3+/-10.2 (range 24-67). We could not find any significant correlation between penile Doppler ultrasound parameters and any of penile blood measurements except cGMP that demonstrated a significant negative correlation with PSV (rho=-0.533, P=0.001) and RI (rho=-0.468, P=0.005). However, a positive correlation between cGMP and EDV was detected (rho=0.322, P=0.059). Mean cGMP levels were 3.347+/-0.694 pmol ml(-1) (2.295-4.685), 3.193+/-0.669 pmol ml(-1) (2.165-4.094) and 2.742+/-0.690 pmol ml(-1) (1.290-4.011) in grades 2, 3 and 4 tumescence groups, respectively, and the difference among mean cGMP levels of these groups were statistically significant (P=0.027). As a conclusion, penile blood cGMP level showed a significant negative correlation with mean PSV, RI values and tumescence grade, whereas there was a positive but insignificant correlation between cGMP and mean EDV value.

Does the type of the Peyronie's curvature effect penile vascular parameters in normopotent men?

The aim of this study is to assess whether the type of penile curvature in normopotent men with Peyronie's disease affects the penile vascular doppler ultrasound parameters. Fifty-three normopotent patients within the stabilization phase of Peyronie's disease were evaluated retrospectively by means of color doppler ultrasonography. Bilateral cavernosal artery diameters before and after intracavernous papaverine injections, peak systolic and end diastolic velocities and the amount of leakage in the deep dorsal penile vein were compared in dorsal and ventral curvature groups of Peyronie's disease. 61% of the patients in dorsal and 59% in ventral Peyronie's curvature group have normal ultrasonographic penile vascular system. 35% and 3.3% in dorsal curvature group and 36.4% and 4.5% in ventral curvature group have venoocclusive dysfunction and mixed vascular pathologies, respectively, having no statistical correlation between them (p > 0.05). No arterial pathology was observed in any group. There was no correlation between the type of Peyronie's curvature and the penile doppler ultrasonographic findings in normopotent patients.

Clinical management of hydatid disease of the urinary tract.

This study reviews urinary hydatid disease in seven males and three females (mean age, 32.1 +/- 17.7 years; range, 7-67 years). Cysts were located in the kidney in six cases (one also involved the liver), the paravesical and retrovesical region in two cases (one coexisted with a bladder tumour), the adrenal gland (one case) and in the right parapelvic region (one case). Investigations included urinalysis, eosinophil count, Casoni skin test, indirect haemagglutination test (IHA), abdominal ultrasonography, intravenous urography and computed tomography (CT). All patients underwent surgery and were followed for an average of 5.6 years. Lumbar or abdominal pain was the most common symptom. Eosinophilia was seen in five patients (50%), IHA positivity occurred in four patients (40%) and the Casoni skin test was positive in four patients (40%). Abdominal CT was the most useful diagnostic method of radiological investigation (100%). No complications or recurrences were seen on follow-up. Urinary hydatid disease is uncommon and is likely to cause considerable diagnostic difficulties, and should therefore be considered in the differential diagnosis of space-occupying lesions of the urinary tract.