Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine

In a sequential study to compare the efficacy of bromocryptine and danazol in the treatment of severe cyclical mastalgia, 70% of patients in both groups were relieved of their symptoms. Patients tended to prefer bromocryptine because of its limited side effects. There was a significant fall in prolactin levels with bromocryptine, but not with danazol.

This paper describes a prospective trial which was set up in order to decide whether after knee replacement it is better to remove the tourniquet (pneumatic cuff) before closure of the wound or to leave it on until compressive dressings have been applied. In 80 operations studied, there was less blood loss when the tourniquet was removed after closure and bandaging, but there was no difference in wound complications. The only statistically significant difference was attributed to the timing of tourniquet removal in those patients (about half) who were receiving low-dose heparin.

Fine-needle percutaneous cholangiography has been carried out on a selected group of 22 infants and children who were jaundiced from a variety of causes. The technique has aided both the diagnosis and surgical management of the patients and has been free from complications.

The history of Frey's syndrome is explored together with its physiopathological and anatomical basis. A study of 19 cases of parotidectomy in 15 patients is reviewed and the results of 17 tympanic neurectomies presented.

The relation of the HBsAg carrier state with fertility parameters and the sex ratio of offspring was studied in 1129 married women in 12 villages from different areas in Greece, in whom blood samples were tested for HBsAg. The results were compared between the group of HBsAg asymptomatic carriers and the HBsAg-negative group. An increase of the sex ratio was found in the group of HBsAg carriers. Furthermore, a decrease in the live births and a reduction in the number of female children were observed. It is concluded that a fertility disturbance in the HBsAg-positive group is probably responsible for the alteration of the sex ratio. An immunological mechanism may be the cause of the fertility disturbance found in the HBsAg carriers.