Seasonal trends of pyogenic spondylodiscitis in Japan: a nationwide inpatient database study.

Objectives: The aims of this study were 1) to investigate seasonal epidemiological variations of pyogenic spondylodiscitis, including Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection, in Japan, and 2) to evaluate associated inpatient outcomes.

Methods: We performed a retrospective nationwide study using data from the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination (DPC) inpatient database, covering the period from 2010 to 2022. The parameters assessed were seasonal incidence, demographic characteristics, inpatient mortality, complications, and medical costs.

Pharmacological evaluation of E2730, a novel selective uncompetitive GAT1 inhibitor, on epileptiform activities in resected brain tissues from human focal cortical dysplasia ex vivo.

Focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) is an important etiology of focal epilepsy in children and adults. However, only a few preclinical models sufficiently reproduce the characteristic histopathologic features of FCD. To improve the success rate of clinical trials for antiseizure medications (ASMs) in patients with FCD, more human-relevant preclinical models are needed, and epileptic foci resected from patients are a powerful tool for this purpose.

Frequency and pathogenesis of periprosthetic atypical femoral fractures associated with total knee arthroplasty: A multicenter prospective study with complementary histopathological and biomechanical analysis.

Introduction: Although the diagnostic criteria for atypical femoral fracture (AFF) exclude periprosthetic fractures, reports of periprosthetic femoral fractures with characteristics of AFF are rapidly increasing. In this study, we investigated the frequency and pathogenesis of periprosthetic AFF associated with total knee arthroplasty (TKA) based on a theory of AFF subtypes that divides AFFs into two main types: fragility stress fractures of the bowed femoral shaft in the mid-shaft and "typical" subtrochanteric AFFs due to suppression of bone turnover (e.g.

Identification of a Biallelic Missense Variant in Gasdermin D (c.823G > C, p.Asp275His) in a Patient of Atypical Gorham-Stout Disease in a Consanguineous Family.

Gorham-Stout disease (GSD), also called vanishing bone disease, is a rare osteolytic disease, frequently associated with lymphangiomatous tissue proliferation. The causative genetic background has not been noted except for a case with a somatic mutation in . However, in the present study, we encountered a case of GSD from a consanguineous family member.

E2730, an uncompetitive γ-aminobutyric acid transporter-1 inhibitor, suppresses epileptic seizures in a rat model of chronic mesial temporal lobe epilepsy.

Objective: More than one third of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) patients are resistant to current antiseizure medications (ASMs), and half experience mild-to-moderate adverse effects of ASMs. There is therefore a strong need to develop and test novel ASMs. The objective of this work is to evaluate the pharmacokinetics and neurological toxicity of E2730, a novel uncompetitive inhibitor of γ-aminobutyric acid transporter-1, and to test its seizure suppression effects in a rat model of chronic MTLE.

A Comparison of Spinopelvic Alignment and Quality of Life between Farmers and Non-Farmers: A Cross-Sectional Population-Based Study in a Japanese Rural Area.

Background: It may be difficult to define what would constitute an abnormal spinal sagittal alignment. The same degree of malalignment may be found both in patients with pain and disability and in asymptomatic individuals. This study focuses on elderly farmers who characteristically have a kyphotic spine, in addition to local residents.

Evaluation of Ulnar Setting of Volar Locking Plates for Distal Radius Fractures Using Modified Skyline View.

Purpose: Volar lunate facet fragments in distal radius fractures are located at the center of the load in the wrist joint and, therefore, should be properly supported by the distal ulnar setting of volar locking plates to obtain better postoperative outcomes. This study evaluated the usefulness of the modified skyline view (MSV) in intraoperative fluoroscopy for the ulnar setting of volar locking plates by comparing it with that of the anteroposterior view (APV).

Methods: Sixty-five patients with distal radius fractures who underwent open reduction and plate fixation as well as follow-up intraoperative fluoroscopy and postoperative computed tomography (CT) at our institution between April 2019 and March 2022 were included.

Impact of romosozumab on serum calcium concentration and factors predicting the fluctuations in calcium concentration upon romosozumab administration: A multicenter retrospective study.

Objectives: As romosozumab has both bone anabolic and antiresorptive effects, it is not clear which patient groups are more likely to have decreased calcium concentrations when treated with romosozumab. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of romosozumab treatment on serum calcium concentration in patients with osteoporosis with a high risk of fractures and identify factors that might be associated with, or even predict, a fluctuation in calcium concentration upon romosozumab administration.

Materials And Methods: In total, 47 patients were included in this retrospective study.

The Real-World Effect of 12 Months of Romosozumab Treatment on Patients With Osteoporosis With a High Risk of Fracture and Factors Predicting the Rate of Bone Mass Increase: A Multicenter Retrospective Study.

Excluding clinical trials, there is limited evidence on the effect of 12 months of romosozumab treatment on bone mineral density (BMD) increase in real-world clinical practice because its use has only been approved recently. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the real-world effect of 12 months of romosozumab treatment on BMD increase and identify factors that predict the rate of BMD increase after 12 months of romosozumab treatment. We retrospectively investigated 106 patients who completed a 12-month romosozumab treatment for osteoporosis with a high risk of fractures at four hospitals from March 2020 to March 2022.

The necessity of routine screening for deep vein thrombosis before surgery.

Background: Pulmonary embolism (PE) from deep venous thrombosis (DVT) can be a fatal postoperative complication. Preventive measures for venous thromboembolism (VTE) was evaluated in this hospital.

Materials And Methods: Preoperative DVT screening following surgery under general anesthesia in 2009-2016 was examined, and then, 217 patients diagnosed with DVT by preoperative leg-ultrasound (US) between 2014 and 2016 were retrospectively analyzed.

Comparison of Lateral Lumbar Interbody Fusion and Posterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion as Corrective Surgery for Patients with Adult Spinal Deformity-A Propensity Score Matching Analysis.

Lateral lumbar interbody fusion (LLIF) is increasingly performed as corrective surgery for patients with adult spinal deformity (ASD). This paper compares the surgical results of LLIF and conventional posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF)/transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) in ASD using a propensity score matching analysis. We retrospectively reviewed patients with ASD who received LLIF and PLIF/TLIF, and investigated patients' backgrounds, radiographic parameters, and complications.

Impact of body mass index on surgical outcomes and complications in adult spinal deformity.

Background: Several studies have reported that overweightness and obesity are associated with higher complication rates in lumbar spine surgery. However, little is known about the effect of obesity on postoperative complications in adult spinal deformity (ASD) surgery, especially in the elderly. This study aimed to examine the effect of body mass index (BMI) on surgical outcomes and postoperative complications in elderly ASD patients undergoing surgical correction in Japan.

Inhibitory effect of anti-seizure medications on ionotropic glutamate receptors: special focus on AMPA receptor subunits.

Objective: The purpose of the current analysis was to investigate the direct inhibitory effects of perampanel and other anti-seizure medications (ASMs) on the α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA), N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA), and kainate glutamate receptor subtypes using electrophysiological assessments.

Methods: AMPA receptor subunit-expressing cell lines (hGluA1-4, including two kinds of Q/R RNA-editing variants of hGluA2), NMDA receptor-expressing cells (hNR1/hNR2B), and kainate receptor-expressing cells (hGluK2) were developed in house. The effects of perampanel, and other ASMs including topiramate, phenobarbital, lamotrigine, gabapentin, carbamazepine, valproate, levetiracetam, and lacosamide, on AMPA, NMDA, and kainate receptors were evaluated by automated patch-clamp technique.

Biological activity is not suppressed in mid-shaft stress fracture of the bowed femoral shaft unlike in "typical" atypical subtrochanteric femoral fracture: A proposed theory of atypical femoral fracture subtypes.

Background: We have investigated mid-shaft stress fractures of the bowed femoral shaft (SBFs), well before the first report of an association between suppression of bone turnover and atypical femoral fractures (AFFs). Although all cases of SBF meet the criteria for AFF, SBFs can also occur in patients with no exposure to bone turnover suppression-related drugs (e.g.

Potential bone fragility of mid-shaft atypical femoral fracture: Biomechanical analysis by a CT-based nonlinear finite element method.

Introduction: The authors previously reported a CT-based nonlinear finite element analysis (nonlinear CT/FEA) model to investigate loading stress distribution in the femoral shaft of patients with atypical femoral fractures (AFFs). This showed that stress distribution, influenced primarily by femoral bowing, may determine the location of AFF. Here, we demonstrate the locational characteristics associated with AFFs in an Asian, specifically Japanese, population regarding bone strength.

Functional Comparison of Neuronal Cells Differentiated from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Neural Stem Cells under Different Oxygen and Medium Conditions.

Because neurons are difficult to obtain from humans, generating functional neurons from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) is important for establishing physiological or disease-relevant screening systems for drug discovery. To examine the culture conditions leading to efficient differentiation of functional neural cells, we investigated the effects of oxygen stress (2% or 20% O) and differentiation medium (DMEM/F12:Neurobasal-based [DN] or commercial [PhoenixSongs Biologicals; PS]) on the expression of genes related to neural differentiation, glutamate receptor function, and the formation of networks of neurons differentiated from hiPSCs (201B7) via long-term self-renewing neuroepithelial-like stem (lt-NES) cells. Expression of genes related to neural differentiation occurred more quickly in PS and/or 2% O than in DN and/or 20% O, resulting in high responsiveness of neural cells to glutamate, N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA), α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionate (AMPA), and ( S)-3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine (an agonist for mGluR), as revealed by calcium imaging assays.

Functional Characterization of Acetylcholine Receptors Expressed in Human Neurons Differentiated from Hippocampal Neural Stem/Progenitor Cells.

Neurotransmission mediated by acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) plays an important role in learning and memory functions in the hippocampus. Impairment of the cholinergic system contributes to Alzheimer's disease (AD), indicating the importance of AChRs as drug targets for AD. To improve the success rates for AD drug development, human cell models that mimic the target brain region are important.

Establishment of a Human Neuronal Network Assessment System by Using a Human Neuron/Astrocyte Co-Culture Derived from Fetal Neural Stem/Progenitor Cells.

Using human cell models mimicking the central nervous system (CNS) provides a better understanding of the human CNS, and it is a key strategy to improve success rates in CNS drug development. In the CNS, neurons function as networks in which astrocytes play important roles. Thus, an assessment system of neuronal network functions in a co-culture of human neurons and astrocytes has potential to accelerate CNS drug development.

Characterization of Human Hippocampal Neural Stem/Progenitor Cells and Their Application to Physiologically Relevant Assays for Multiple Ionotropic Glutamate Receptors.

The hippocampus is an important brain region that is involved in neurological disorders such as Alzheimer disease, schizophrenia, and epilepsy. Ionotropic glutamate receptors-namely,N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors (NMDARs), α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionate (AMPA) receptors (AMPARs), and kainic acid (KA) receptors (KARs)-are well known to be involved in these diseases by mediating long-term potentiation, excitotoxicity, or both. To predict the therapeutic efficacy and neuronal toxicity of drug candidates acting on these receptors, physiologically relevant systems for assaying brain region-specific human neural cells are necessary.