[Half-gloving cordectomy: a modified procedure for concealed penis].

OBJECTIVE: To search for a simple surgical procedure for the treatment of concealed penis that may have better effect and less complications. METHODS: We used a modified surgical method in the treatment of 58 patients with concealed penis aged from 3 to 15 (mean 6.8) years. The operation was simplified and involved the following steps: wholly unveiling the penis glans, half-degloving the foreskins, cutting off all the adhesive fibers up to the penile suspensory ligaments, and liberating the external penis. RESULTS: The operation was successful in all the patients, with the operative time of 15 -45 (mean 33) minutes, hospital stay of 2 - 5 (mean 3.5) days, but no complications except mild foreskin edema in 5 cases. The external penis was prolonged from 0.5 - 2.8 (mean 1.4) cm preoperatively to 3.2 - 8.5 (mean 3.9) cm postoperatively. The patients were followed up for 1 -3 years, all satisfied with the length and appearance of the penis, and their sexual and reproductive functions were normal. CONCLUSION: The modified surgical procedure for concealed penis is simple and effective, with desirable outcomes, few postoperative complications and no damage to sexual and reproductive functions.

[Testosterone induces different-featured prostate hyperplasia in castrated and uncastrated mice].

OBJECTIVE: To study the different features of hyperplasia in castrated and uncastrated mice after testosterone (T) treatment. METHODS: Forty-eight BALB/c mice were randomly divided into 6 groups of 8 in each: castrated (A), uncastrated (B) , castrated + low T (C), uncastrated + low T (D), castrated + high T (E), uncastrated + high T (F). Groups C and D were treated with testosterone solution at the dose of 12.5 mg/(kg d) and Groups E and F at 125 mg/(kg d) for 20 consecutive days, while Groups A and B received saline only. All the mice were sacrificed on the 21st day, their ventral and dorsal prostate glands weighed and their pathological features studied. RESULTS: Atrophic prostates were observed in Group A, but normal in Group B; prostatic hyperplasia was found in both Group C and D, but more obvious in the latter (P <0.05); and a slightly higher degree of hyperplasia was noted in Groups E and F than in C and D. There was an increase in serum T and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) concentration and a decrease in serum estrogen (E2) concentration in the testosterone treated groups. CONCLUSION: Both castrated and uncastrated mice develop prostate hyperplasia after short-term testosterone treatment, although in different degrees and with different features, which may help further the studies on the association of castration and androgen with prostate diseases.

Influence of age on seven putative prostate tumor markers: a cohort study in Chinese men.

The accuracy and sensitivity of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) for prostate cancer diagnosis is often poor; however, the reasons for its inaccuracy have rarely been investigated, especially with respect to age. In this study, 476 healthy males, aged 10-89 years, were stratified into eight age groups, and levels of seven markers were determined: total PSA (tPSA), free PSA (fPSA), %fPSA, isoform [-2]proPSA (p2PSA), p2PSA/tPSA, %p2PSA, and the prostate health index (PHI). Both tPSA and fPSA levels increased with age. The tPSA level was highest (1.39 ng ml-1) at 70-79 years; %fPSA was highest (0.57 ng ml-1) at 10-19 years; and %p2PSA was lowest (18.33 ng ml-1) at 40-49 years. Both p2PSA and p2PSA/tPSA had relatively flat curves and showed no correlation with age (P = 0.222). PHI was a sensitive age-associated marker (P < 0.05), with two peaks and one trough. The coverage rates and radiance graphs of PHI and %p2PSA were more distinctive than those of tPSA and the other markers. In subjects older than 69 years, PHI and %p2PSA both began to decrease, approximately 10 years earlier than the decrease in tPSA. Our results suggest that the clinical diagnosis of prostate cancer using PSA should be investigated more comprehensively based on patient age. Moreover, %p2PSA and PHI could be considered as earlier markers that may be more suitable than PSA alone.