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Concentration of different forms of inorganic phosphorus in domestic sewage was measured by ion chromatography. Very low content of poly- and pyrophosphates was found. Potential sources of different P-forms, like popular washing powders, as well as the degradation process kinetics in raw sewage, were investigated.

By comparison to the values in the northern part, the influence was shown of the hypolimnion waters removal on thermal and oxygen structure, visibility, and phosphorus and nitrogen content in the southern part of the Kortowskie Lake, which has been rejuvenated (reclaimed) since 1956. The tendency of the parameters to change is also presented in this paper.

The main therapeutic measures employed for treating renal patients, including those with chronic renal failure (CRF), were, in the past century, a milk diet and bed rest, both of which are noxious. The former is noxious due to the high protein (PR), sodium (Na), and inorganic phosphorus (Pi) content, and the latter is noxious due to its catabolic action. Traces of this “therapeutic” philosophy were still present in the countryside in the first decades of this century in Italy.

The renal handling of phosphate in patients with renal failure has received considerable attention. Goldman and Bassett (1954) found that tubular reabsorption of phosphate (TRP) decreases as renal failure progresses. They concluded that this phenomenon is responsible for the maintenance of the concentration of inorganic phosphorus in blood until the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) decreases to 20–30% of normal. Similar observations have been reported by Better et al. (1967), Kleeman et al. (1967), Coburn et al. (1969), and Popovtzer et al. (1970b) (Fig. 1).

Despite large changes in the electrolyte concentration in blood the content of brain electrolyte usually remains quite stable1,2 These observations are due to the blood-brain barrier which consists of the processes involved at the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)-blood3, CSF-brain4 and blood-brain interfaces5,6.

There are 600–700 grams of phosphorus in the human body, with 85% of it in the skeleton. Only 600–700 mg or 1/1000 of total body phosphorus is found in the extracellular fluid. About 15% of body phosphorus is located in soft tissues, mainly in the form of intermediary carbohydrate, lipid and protein compounds. The amount of inorganic phosphorus in the cell is very small, but it is very important since it is this fraction which provides the source of phosphorus for the resynthesis of adenosine triphosphate, ATP, (1).

In considering compliance and in evaluating its meaning, doctors and dieticians often take too rigid an attidute, making a clear-cut separation between compliance and noncompliance, and overlooking intermediate conditions. This is not realistic and causes a negative attitude. The intermediate conditions exist and have their own meaning.