Plural large floating thrombi in the ascending aorta.

Floating thrombi in the ascending aorta are a very rare finding in non-aneurysmal, mildly atherosclerotic or normal aortas. We report a case of floating thrombi in a 66-year-old man who was admitted to the hospital with acute chest pain and dyspnea. Enhanced computed tomography showed two large floating thrombi in the ascending aorta, type B aortic dissection, deep venous thrombosis, and pulmonary embolism.

Massive hematuria and shock caused by ilio-ureteral fistula in a patient with an isolated internal iliac artery aneurysm.

An emergent operation was performed on a 73-year-old woman with massive hematuria and serious shock. A computed tomography (CT) revealed that the cause of the shock was hemorrhage from an aneurysm into the ureter, with resultant massive hematuria. During surgery, we observed that the ureter was encased into the wall of the aneurysm, with exposure of the pre-positioned ureteric stent inside the aneurysmal space.

Perfect and least invasive sealing technique on the lesser curvature of the aortic arch: application of a novel stent graft to an aneurysm developing on a postoperative ductus arteriosus.

A 78-year-old woman who underwent an operation for a patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) about thirty years ago developed an aneurysm on the aortic side of the remnant ductal tissue. To avoid risky, open surgery, we performed endovascular aortic therapy using a novel stent graft (SG), which was pre-curved, fenestrated and custom-made type. This graft was designed to configure to the patient's whole aortic arch anatomy, and was capable of accurately adjusting its fenestrations to the arch branch orifices during the procedure.

Left atrial papillary fibroelastoma accidentally diagnosed with gastric cancer.

Papillary fibroelastoma is a rare but benign cardiac tumor and usually originates from the cardiac valve. We describe a 78-year-old woman who was initially diagnosed with gastric cancer, and was incidentally found to have a mass in the free wall of her left atrium between the left atrial appendage and the left superior pulmonary vein. An excision was performed through the left atrial appendage under cardiopulmonary bypass.

Mesenteric artery fenestration for type B dissection with visceral ischemia.

We describe a successful case of direct superior mesenteric artery fenestration for an acute type B dissection complicated by bowel necrosis in a 68-year-old man. At 11 days after the onset, computed tomography showed superior mesenteric artery obstruction. We fenestrated and connected the true lumen to the false lumen of the superior mesenteric artery, and performed thrombectomy in both lumens.

An innovative exclusion technique for ductus arteriosus with a novel stent graft.

A 72-year-old woman who had a patent ductus arteriosus that was anatomically unsuitable for catheter coiling was treated with a pre-curved fenestrated stent graft. This graft was custom-made to configure the patient's whole aortic arch, and was capable of accurately adjusting its fenestrations to the arch branch orifices. The advantage of this fenestrated stent graft is close sealing, especially on the lesser curvature of the arch.

Aortic valve replacement for aortic regurgitation in a patient with antiphospholipid antibody syndrome.

Cardiac manifestations of antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APLS) comprise a major complication. Herein we report our surgical treatment of aortic regurgitation in a patient with APLS. A 61-year-old woman was referred to our hospital with symptoms of congestive heart failure.

[A case of nonspecific interstitial pneumonia associated with amyopathic dermatomyositis efficiently treated with a combination of cyclosporin A and prednisolone].

A 36-year-old man was admitted to our hospital complaining of cough, dyspnea on exertion, skin eruptions, and joint pain. Characteristic skin lesions such as erythema around the nails, telangiectasis, and edema of the eyelids were observed in this patient. He had never complained of muscle symptoms, and his laboratory examinations showed no elevation of either CPK or aldolase.