Androgen plays an important role in female sexual function, and its insufficiency causes a clinically significant sexual dysfunction. This study examines the association between sex hormones and the clinical effect of testosterone replacement therapy in female sexual dysfunction.

This study examined 75 female patients who visited our hospital from March 2002 to June 2008 to treat sexual dysfunction. For the rest of the patients, we performed primary treatment and physiotherapy in accordance with the main cause of their sexual dysfunction. We also performed combination treatment of androgen replacement therapy for the patients who did not make medical progress after two months of primary treatment and for the patients whose free testosterone level is in the bottom group out of three normal range groups.

The mean age of target patients was 39.6±8.7 years (range, 35~66 years) old. 10 patients out of 75 patients were postmenopausal women, and estrogen replacement therapy had been performed without androgen replacement therapy. We performed a combination treatment of androgen replacement therapy for the patients with sexual desire disorder, and 60% of them answered that they had an increased sexual response after they were given combination treatment of androgen replacement therapy.

The results support the concepts that sex hormones significantly affect sexual response in women with sexual dysfunction. Clinically, it is effective and safe to perform a combination treatment of androgen replacement therapy in treating sexual dysfunction if medication is administered properly and carefully.

Biothesiometer is a device for quantitatively measuring vibratory thresholds in a noninvasive manner. It has been utilized for evaluating variety of neurological diseases for decades. We aimed to investigate difference of vibratory thresholds according to presence of specific lower urinary tract symptoms(LUTS).

173 female patients were included in this study. We investigated medical history, and performed physical examination, cystoscopy, and biothesiometry. Biothesiometry were recorded on clitoris, vestibules, and both labia minora. Relationship between age, LUTS, serum triglyceride(TG) and cholesterol(Chol) level, and vibratory thresholds were also analyzed.

Mean age of patients was 51.8±9.4 years. LUTS consisted of stress urinary incontinence(SUI)(87.4%), urgency or urge incontinence(UUI)(77.1%), and frequency(66%). Age was closely related with vibratory thresholds. Correlation coefficient was 0.394, 0.343, 0.332, 0.294, 0.279 for clitoris, both labia, and anterior and posterior vestibules, respectively(p<0.001). Patients with SUI and UUI showed significantly increased vibratory thresholds on clitoris and right labium compared to those who do not have any of SUI or UUI(p<0.05). TG and Chol levels were not related with vibratory thresholds.

Vibratory thresholds of external genitalia area were increased in proportion to age. Patients had different vibratory thresholds according to their LUTS. This finding suggests that LUTS is associated with insufficiency of pudendal nerve.

It is important to improve treatment efficacy in the management of urolithiasis in respect of time saving cost effectiveness. An experimental study reported that optimal fluid act as an interface between stone and urothelium improves fragmentation. We investigated the effect of diuretic usage in the SWL treatment of urolithiasis.

Sixty renal stone patients were selected for the prospective randomized double blind study. Patient in group A were given a placebo injection and patient in group B were given 20mg IV furosemide at the time of SWL treatment. Both groups received standard SWL monotherapy using Modulith SLX2000 lithoclast(Storz®, Germany). The energy setting, number of shock waves per session were identical in both groups. Treatment results were compared three weeks later after the first SWL treatment.

Mean age of the patients was 44.5±11.3 years old in group A, and 43.1±11.5 years old in group B. Mean size of the calculus before treatment were 9.2±4.8, and 8.9±5.1mm, which did not shown any statistical difference(p>0.05). Three weeks after the treatment, stone fragmentation and stone free rate was significantly higher in group B(p<0.05).

This study suggest that administration of furosemide intravenously during SWL improve stone fragmentation and stone free rate.