THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE ADRENAL GLANDS TO CHANGES IN URINARY NON-PROTEIN NITROGEN FOLLOWING MULTIPLE FRACTURES IN THE FORCE-FED RAT

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Abstract
The urinary NPN excretion of adrenalectomized and sham-operated force-fed male rats was studied before and following operation and fractures of the hind legs. In expt. 1, saline was the only therapy used. Following operation the urinary N increased in each group, higher in the adrenalectomized; no significant rise followed the breaking of the tibia and knee-joint of one leg in the adrenalectomized rats but a significant rise occurred in the controls. In expt. 2, the adrenalectomized rats were treated with 4 ml. of adrenal cortical extract daily instead of saline. In the adrenalectomized cortin-treated rats, the rise in N excretion following operation was less than in saline-treated adrenalectomized rats. Following fractures there was a marked rise in the N loss by the rats of each series. Expt. 3 was identical except that the tibia, femur and knee-joint were fractured in each hind leg. The post-stress increase in nitrogen loss was much greater in each series than in the other expts. In all expts. the loss of N by adrenalectomized rats was less than for the controls during the 1st 24 hrs. following either an operation or fracture. The subsequent response was just as marked in the cortin-treated adrenalectomized rats as in the sham-operated rats. It is concluded that the negative N balance which characteristically develops following fractures may require the presence of the adrenal cortical hormones but is not caused specifically by the increase in secretion of the cortical hormones which occurs during stress.

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