The presence of FAAH in adult animals supports the hypothesis that the eCB system is involved in retinal functions. Overall these results indicate that, as shown in other structures of the brain, the eCB system could play an instrumental role in the development and function of the retina. (C) 2011 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Purpose: Radiotherapy induced urethral strictures are often difficult to manage due to proximal location, compromised vascular supply and poor wound healing. To determine the success of urethroplasty for radiation
induced strictures we performed a multi-institutional review of men who underwent urethroplasty for urethral obstruction.
Materials and Methods: A total of 30 men (mean age 67 years) underwent urethroplasty at 3 separate institutions. Excision c-Met inhibitor with primary anastomosis was used in
24 of 30 patients (80%), with 4 of 30 requiring Etomoxir research buy a genital fasciocutaneous skin flap and 2 a buccal graft. Hospitalization was less than 23 hours for 70% of the patients. Recurrence was defined as cystoscopic identification of urethral narrowing to less than 16Fr in diameter.
Results: All strictures were located in the bulbomembranous region. Mean stricture length was 2.9 cm (range 1.5 to 7). External beam radiotherapy for prostate cancer was the etiology of stricture DNA ligase disease in 15 men (50%), with brachytherapy in 7 (24%) and a combination of the 2 modalities in
8 (26%). Successful urethral reconstruction was achieved in 22 men (73%) at a mean of 21 months. Mean time to stricture recurrence was 5.1 months (range 2 to 8). Two men required balloon dilation after stricture recurrence and none required urinary diversion. Incontinence was transient in 10% and persistent in 40%, with 13% requiring an artificial urinary sphincter. The rate of erectile dysfunction was unchanged following urethroplasty (47% preoperative, 50% postoperative).
Conclusions: Urethroplasty for radiation induced strictures has an acceptable rate of success and can be performed without tissue transfer techniques in most cases. Almost half of men will experience some degree of incontinence as a result of surgery but erectile function appears to be preserved.”
“Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal disorder involving abdominal pain and bowel dysfunction. IBS pain symptoms have been hypothesized to depend on peripheral and central mechanisms, but the pathophysiology is still unclear. The aim of the present study was to assess the contribution of cerebral and cerebrospinal processes to pain inhibition deficits in IBS. Fourteen female patients with diarrhea-predominant IBS (IBS-D) and 14 healthy female volunteers were recruited.