THE DIURETIC ACTION OF THE PARATHYROID EXTRACT

Abstract

The literature of recent years contains several reports concerning the diuretic effect of parathyroid hormone (Mason,¹ Meakins,² Hueper,³ McCann⁴). As the mechanism of this action is not known, the report of some observations made on the kidneys of dogs given injections with parathyroid extract-Collip may be of interest. Sympathicotonic spastic contractions of the vasa afferentia of the glomeruli are considered by Volhard⁵ and Jungmann⁶ as the cause of oliguria and anuria in glomerulonephritis and reflex anuria. This conception has found practical expression in several methods used in the therapeutic management of these conditions as the anesthesia of the splanchnic nerves after Kappis (Neuwirt⁶), general anesthesia to lessen the splanchnic tonus, parenteral injection of blood and protein substances to bring about a change in the tonus of the vegetative nervous system, denervation of the pedicle of the kidney to cause an interruption of the renal nervous supply, especially that by the