The relationship between androgens, regulators of collagen metabolism, and Peyronie's disease: a case control study.

Introduction: Changes in collagen metabolism have been postulated to play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of Peyronie's Disease (PD). Androgens such as dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) and testosterone influence collagen metabolism by modulating the activity of matrix metalloproteases (MMP) and tissue inhibitors of metalloproteases (TIMP).

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the interrelationship between androgens (DHEA-S and testosterone), key regulators of collagen metabolism such as insulin-like growth factor (IGF) 1 and IGF Binding Protein 3 (IGF-BP3), the MMP/TIMP system, and PD.

High power radiofrequency ablation of incessant atrioventricular re-entrant tachycardia in a patient with a Para-Hisian accessory pathway.

Radiofrequency ablation is the interventional therapy of choice for the definitive cure of patients with tachycardias facilitated by accessory pathways. Ablation of an accessory pathway at sites close to the His bundle is inevitably associated with an increased risk of causing complete atrioventricular block. Here we describe the case of a patient with pre-excitation syndrome and episodes of supraventricular tachycardia, in whom an electrophysiological study identified an accessory pathway so close to the His bundle that discrete sites between the pathway and the His bundle were extremely difficult to find.