Andrology
Endocrine regulation of male fertility by the skeleton Oury, F. et al. Cell 144, 1–14 (2011)
A US–Canadian team has published the first evidence supporting a role for the skeleton in endocrine regulation of male reproduction. Their study showed that the osteoblast-derived hormone osteocalcin can trigger testosterone production by the testes (but not estrogen synthesis in the ovaries). Osteocalcin exerts this effect in a CREB-dependent manner after binding to G-protein-coupled receptors in Leydig cells.
Sexual dysfunction
The use of antibiotic-coated three-piece inflatable penile prostheses is associated with fewer serious infections in men with diabetes in the long term. The incidence of infection-related revision procedures was significantly lower at 7 years in the 6,071-strong cohort implanted with minocycline/rifampin-treated prostheses (1.6%, compared with 4.2% in the group who received nonimpregnated prostheses).
Incontinence
Daily 20-min sessions of transcutaneous posterior tibial nerve stimulation can markedly improve symptoms of overactive bladder in a majority of patients with multiple sclerosis. The noninvasive procedure was tested in 70 patients, 83% of whom reported clinical improvement after 1 month of intervention. This improvement was maintained throughout the 3-month study period, with no evidence of adverse effects.
Kidney cancer
Clinicians should consider resolving nutritional deficits of patients with renal cell carcinoma prior to radical or partial nephrectomy. Todd Morgan and colleagues from Vanderbilt University Medical Center have shown that poor nutritional status (defined as BMI <18.5 kg/m2, albumin <3.5 g/dl, or ≥5% preoperative weight loss) is associated with an increased risk of death (hazard ratio 2.4), regardless of tumor stage and grade, nodal status, age, comorbidity and preoperative anemia.
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In brief. Nat Rev Urol 8, 177 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrurol.2011.38
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrurol.2011.38