Pilot Line Kinking Prevents Cuff Deflation: A Case Report.

We report kinking of the pilot line of an endotracheal tube (ETT). The anesthesiologist found it difficult to deflate the ETT cuff after performing test inflation with air before intubation. We subsequently filled the pilot line with red dye and examined it from the connection with the pilot balloon to the site of entry into the ETT wall.

New Swallowing Evaluation Using Piezoelectricity in Normal Individuals.

This study aimed to elucidate the relationship between the piezoelectric waveform latency, hyoid bone movement, surface electromyogram (sEMG), and the pharyngeal transit time (PTT) during swallowing. Forty-one healthy subjects were divided into three age groups: younger (20-39 years, n = 8), middle-aged (40-59 years, n = 9), and older (60-79 years, n = 24). Motion analysis of the hyoid bone using videofluorography (VF), waveform analysis of the front neck using piezoelectric films, and sEMG of the suprahyoid muscle group were performed simultaneously.

Potentiation by neuropeptide Y of 5HT2A receptor-mediated contraction in porcine coronary artery.

Potentiation by neuropeptide Y of serotonin (5-HT)-induced vasoconstriction was investigated in porcine coronary artery. 5-HT caused concentration-dependent contraction through 5-HT2A receptors. Neuropeptide Y (30 nM) significantly increased the 5HT-induced contraction by 16+/-5% in arteries with intact endothelium.

A study on the effects of short-, medium- and long-term professional oral care in elderly persons requiring long-term nursing care at a chronic or maintenance stage of illness.

Objective: The purpose of the present study is to clarify the frequency of provision of effective professional oral care by dental health workers in order to improve the oral hygiene state of elderly persons requiring long-term care.

Methods: In 105 patients requiring long-term nursing care, 55 subjects with positive oral Candida albicans were divided into five groups according to the frequency of oral care intervention at intervals of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 weeks. The effects of professional oral care on the improvement of the oral hygiene state were investigated taking the frequency and duration of care into consideration.