Publications by authors named "Aita T"

As one of methods for in vitro selection, a flow reactor type washing/selection system seems to be effective, where a ligand library is composed of "genotype-phenotype linking molecules". In this system, high affinity ligands are selected by their respective "residual ratio" given by exp(-k×t), where k is the dissociation rate constant and t is the washing time. In this paper, we mathematically considered the following possibility.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) is a severe drug reaction characterized by skin rash, organ involvement, lymph node swelling, eosinophilia, and atypical lymphocytosis, with myocarditis being a rare but potentially fatal complication. It has been reported that in patients with cardiac involvement due to DRESS, older age and shorter periods between offending drug exposure and symptom onset are associated with mortality. We report a case of fatal DRESS-associated myocarditis in a young woman, occurring one month after drug exposure, despite intensive immunosuppressive therapy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of shaking chills as a predictor of bacteremia in adults, as previous findings on this topic were conflicting.* -
  • The analysis included 19 studies with 14,641 patients, revealing that shaking chills had a pooled sensitivity of 0.37 and specificity of 0.87 for predicting bacteremia.* -
  • While shaking chills are a specific indicator of bacteremia, their lower sensitivity indicates that they should not be the sole factor in diagnosing bacteremia; timely blood cultures and antibiotics are recommended when shaking chills occur.*
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hypothyroidism presents various symptoms, ranging from commonly observed signs, such as fatigue, cold sensation, and constipation, to rare features, such as rash and pancytopenia, resembling certain rheumatological and hematological diseases. Chronic, excessive iodine consumption causes primary hypothyroidism. However, when iodine overconsumption becomes a regular part of daily dietary habits, it becomes difficult for patients to associate their symptoms with daily iodine consumption.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The rapid spread of a novel type of coronavirus infection, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has made it difficult to implement the results of clinical trials in real-world situations. After the emergence of the Omicron variant and messenger RNA vaccine, a combination of less virulent but more contagious viruses and more people with protective immunity has resulted in a larger number of patients with less severe, mild-to-moderate COVID-19. Many patients with severe conditions did not have extensive viral pneumonia frequently seen in the "pre-Omicron" era but had serious complications due to aggravation of underlying comorbidities or secondary bacterial infections.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Person-centred care (PCC), which incorporates patients' preferences and values for medical care and their life, has been proposed in decision-making for promoting advance care planning (ACP) among patients with kidney failure. Therefore, we aimed to examine variations in PCC across facilities and the association between PCC and ACP participation.

Methods: This multicentre cross-sectional study included Japanese adults undergoing outpatient haemodialysis at six dialysis centres.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Basic health literacy and trust in physicians can influence medication adherence in patients receiving dialysis. However, how high-order health literacy is associated with medication adherence and how trust in physicians mediates this association remain unclear. We assessed the inter-relationships between health literacy, trust in physicians, and medication adherence.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Natural phenomena generate complex dynamics because of nonlinear interactions among their components. The dynamics can be exploited as a kind of computational resource. For example, in the framework of natural computation, various natural phenomena such as quantum mechanics and cellular dynamics are used to realize general purpose calculations or logical operations.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Intravenous antibiotics are the primary treatment of choice for pyogenic vertebral osteomyelitis (PVO). Surgical intervention is required when the initial antibiotic treatment fails but is often difficult to perform, especially in older adults with multiple comorbidities, because of the reduced physical activity. The size of the infection signal in the spinal bone on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at the time of diagnosis was reported to have a high predictive accuracy for antibiotic treatment failure.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: To assess the usefulness of case reports as sources for research on diagnostic errors in uncommon diseases and atypical presentations.

Content: We reviewed 563 case reports of diagnostic error. The commonality of the final diagnoses was classified based on the description in the articles, Orphanet, or epidemiological data on available references; the typicality of presentation was classified based on the description in the articles and the judgment of the physician researchers.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

To elucidate the epidemiology of murine typhus, which is infrequently reported in Japan, we conducted a cross-sectional study involving 2,382 residents of rickettsiosis-endemic areas in Honshu Island during August-November 2020. Rickettsia typhi seroprevalence rate was higher than that of Orientia tsutsugamushi, indicating that murine typhus is a neglected disease.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: We examined the frequency of cross-reactions to Rickettsia typhi in patients with Japanese spotted fever (JSF) and evaluated the differences between two rickettsiae using antibody endpoint titers.

Methods: Patients' immunoglobulin (Ig)M and IgG titers against Rickettsia japonica and Rickettsia typhi in two phases were measured using an indirect immunoperoxidase assay at two reference centers for rickettsiosis in Japan. Cross-reaction was defined as a higher titer against R.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Myositis-specific autoantibodies are relevant factors that define the disease phenotype of dermatomyositis (DM). Anti-Mi-2 antibody-positive DM patients may present with the typical skin lesions and prominent myositis. On the other hand, adult DM patients with anti-TIF-γ antibody seem to be associated with internal malignancy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To evaluate the effects of body weight-supported overground gait training (BWSOGT) on motor abilities, such as gait and balance, in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD).

Design: Retrospective case-controlled observational study with a 4-week follow-up.

Setting: Inpatient rehabilitation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A woman aged 45 years with a 1.5-year history of violaceous plaques on the forehead and chest presented with fever, weight loss and aggravation of the plaques. Inflammatory markers and interleukin-6 level were elevated, and superficial lymphadenopathies and splenomegaly were identified by CT scan.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF