New Era to the True “International” Braz J Urol

     Dear Colleagues,

     It is my pleasure to announce important news in our Journal, starting with the January – February 2006 issue.
     The International Braz J Urol, in addition to being the official Journal of the Brazilian Society of Urology – SBU, it is now the official Journal of the Confederácion Americana de Urologia - CAU, a society which represents a total of 21 Latin American and Iberian countries through their official societies.
     The already known international characteristic of our Journal is now even more present. With this issue, four new Associate Editors were appointed. Dr. Miguel Srougi from the University of Sao Paulo was designated for the SBU side, Dr. Julio Pow-Sang, from the University of South Florida, for the CAU side, Dr. Frans M. Debruyne, from the University Medical Center Nijmegen is representing the European countries, and Dr. Mark S. Soloway, from the University of Miami School of Medicine is representing the USA.
    The Board of Consulting Editors was deeply renewed and expanded. The board is now divided into committees, by field of interest, and is composed by prominent individuals in their areas, all of them with significant scientific production. This new Board of Consulting Editors includes urologists and scientists from 25 countries, all of them committed to our Journal. We deeply acknowledge these very busy colleagues for accepting to collaborate and participate in that venture.
     Now, the Journal is regularly sent to all Brazilian urologists as well as to those that are members of the South and Central American official Urological societies. Urologists from Portugal, Spain and other European Countries as well as the USA also receive the International Braz J Urol. In addition to the printed version, which has a circulation of 6,000 copies per issue, reaching more than 60 countries, the electronic version of our Journal has been receiving around 25,000 on-line visits every month, from more than 110 different countries, and these figures place the International Braz J Urol among the most read urological journals. As everybody knows, in addition to a high-qualified Editorial Board, the success of a scientific Journal is measured by the number of readers, papers submitted and citations. I do hope that all of you will continue to collaborate with our Journal to expand its importance and position in the urologic literature.
     The January - February 2006 issue of the International Braz J Urol presents interesting contributions, and as usual, the Editor's Comment highlights some important papers.
     Doctor Santillo and Lowe, from Columbia University, New York, USA, well-known experts in the field, presented on page 3 a review of the current literature on complementary and alternative medicines utilized by prostate cancer patients and those at risk for the disease. They concluded that simply taking a standard daily multivitamin should be sufficient to ensure appropriate levels of vitamins and minerals without risking the over utilization. This paper is a state-of-the-art recommendation to all urologists involved with PCa.
     Doctor Patel and co-workers, from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pennsylvania, USA, assessed on page 77 the relationships between bladder symptoms, demographic and medical history variables and sexual dysfunction in women with overactive bladder (OAB) disorder. After studying 78 patients they found that the majority of women with OAB symptoms viewed these symptoms as bothersome. However, the extent of symptom bother did not predict aspects of female sexual dysfunction (FSD). On the other hand, menopausal and partner status appeared as the best predictors of FSD in this sample.
     Doctor Nazemi and colleagues, from the University of Nebraska Medical Center, USA, compared on page 15 the perioperative outcomes of patients submitted to radical nephrectomy by the same surgeon, using open or laparoscopic (with or without hand assistance) methods, and the Da Vinci Surgical Robotic System. After evaluating 57 consecutive patients, they concluded that radical nephrectomy can be safely performed either by open, robotic, or laparoscopic with or without hand assistance methods without significant difference in perioperative complication rates.
     Doctor Cavalcanti and colleagues, from the Souza Aguiar Municipal Hospital, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, demonstrated on page 56 the main aspects of diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of patients with gunshot wounds to the penis after an impressive series of 43 individuals. Doctor Mazimo Lazzeri, from Firenze, Italy, Doctor Jack McAninch from the San Francisco General Hospital, California, USA, and Doctor Richard Santucci, from the Wayne State University, Michigan, USA, provided excellent editorial comments on this paper.
     Doctor Antunes and co-workers, from the University of Sao Paulo, USP, Brazil, assessed on page 48 the influence of age in pathological findings and clinical evolution of prostate cancer in patients treated with radical prostatectomy. After analyzing 556 patients, the authors concluded that postoperative pathological findings and biochemical recurrence rates did not differ between studied age groups.

Dr. Francisco J. B. Sampaio
Editor-in-Chief