Ischemic myelopathy.

Ischemic myelopathy and Angiology of the Spinal Cord have recently drawn the attention of both paraplegists and angiologists, and their details are now fairly well known. Ischemic myelopathies increased with the rise of vascular surgery, but the means of prevention have been carefully studied and the incidence is now decreasing. Twenty-five hundred cases of cord injury have been reviewed, and among 92 nontraumatic cases, 16 ischemic myelopathies have been tabulated.

Thermal injury on the foot and ankle of a paraplegic: report of a case from exposure to sunshine.

The case of a paraplegic patient who sustained a fullthickness thermal injury to his left foot from exposure to sunshine is described. Electromagnetic energy from the sun can cause enough damage to full thickness of the skin when the heat is intense enough or not dissipated sufficiently. The lesson of it is that paralyzed and anesthetic individuals should be cautious about sunbathing.

The management of pressure sores.

The authors review their clinical experience in diagnosis and management of over 2,500 cases of pressure sores, of which more than half (1,351) required surgical operations. Pressure sores have been classified in 4 grades, a classification that the authors believe is helpful in planning treatment. Different conservative regimens of management are given.

The pituitary-gonadal axis in spinal cord injury.

Our study documented that serum levels of luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, testosterone, and estradiol in 14 of 15 males with spinal cord injury (SCI) were within the normal range of those of age-matched controls. One patient had gynecomastia with compensated gonadal insufficiency of undetermined etiology. Five males with SCI showed a normal rise in serum testosterone levels following stimulation with human chorionic gonadotropin.