Reliability of range of motion in straight leg raise and hip extension tests among healthy young adults using a smartphone application.

Introduction: Measuring range of motion (ROM) is an important skill for clinicians because it can help in the accurate interpretation of a patient's condition. Recently, ROM tests using smartphone applications have been performed in clinical settings, with the tests demonstrating high reliability and validity. This study aimed to identify the usefulness of ROM tests conducted using smartphone applications by examining the reliability of straight leg raise (SLR) and hip extension (HE) tests.

Managing Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease during pregnancy with steroid pulse therapy: A case report.

Background: High-dose steroid administration is a common initial therapeutic approach for Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease (VKH). Nonetheless, administering substantial doses of steroids to pregnant women necessitates meticulous consideration due to the potential impacts on the mother and fetus. We present a case wherein steroid pulse therapy was administered to a patient who developed VKH during the late stages of pregnancy.

Characteristics of patients with anxiety disorder without selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor prescription over a two-year period of pharmacotherapy.

Introduction: Pharmacotherapy such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or serotonin-noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors is recommended for the treatment of anxiety disorders. Although there are patients with persisted symptoms of anxiety disorders who are treated with monotherapy of benzodiazepine anxiolytics without SSRIs, the characteristics of these patients are unclear. In the present study, we investigated the characteristics of patients with persisted symptoms of anxiety disorder without SSRI prescription.

Role of 2-hydroxy acyl-CoA lyase HACL2 in odd-chain fatty acid production via α-oxidation in vivo.

Although most fatty acids (FAs) are even chain, certain tissues, including brain, contain relatively large quantities of odd-chain FAs in their sphingolipids. One of the pathways producing odd-chain FAs is the α-oxidation of 2-hydroxy (2-OH) FAs, where 2-OH acyl-CoA lyases (HACL1 and HACL2) catalyze the key cleavage reaction. However, the contribution of each HACL to odd-chain FA production in vivo remains unknown.

Sternoclavicular Septic Arthritis Caused by Parvimonas micra and Fusobacterium nucleatum Infection with Intra-articular Corticosteroid Administration.

Sternoclavicular septic arthritis is a rare form of septic arthritis that can lead to fatal complications, such as abscess formation and mediastinitis, in the absence of prompt diagnosis and appropriate treatment. A man in his 40s presented with pain in the right sternoclavicular joint area, and after a joint injection of steroids was administered, he was diagnosed with septic sternoclavicular arthritis caused by Parvimonas micra and Fusobacterium nucleatum. Gram staining of a specimen obtained from the abscess formation area led to early suspicion of anaerobic infection, and appropriate antibiotics were administered.

Effects of general anesthesia on behavioral circadian rhythms and clock-gene expression in the suprachiasmatic nucleus in rats.

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus is a nucleus that regulates circadian rhythms through the cyclic expression of clock genes. It has been suggested that circadian-rhythm-related, adverse postoperative events, including sleep disturbances and delirium, are partly caused by anesthesia-induced disruption of clock-gene expression. We examined the effects of multiple general anesthetics on the expression cycle of Period2 (Per2), one of the clock genes that regulate circadian rhythms in the SCN, and on the behavioral rhythms of animals.

Decreasing Plasma Fibrinogen Levels in the Intensive Care Unit Are Associated with High Mortality Rates In Patients With Sepsis-Induced Coagulopathy.

Plasma fibrinogen levels increase in response to infection, but they could also decrease due to degradation as in severe coagulopathy. We evaluated 60 septic patients with their CRP levels over 5.00 mg/dL.

Clinical Utility of BD mCCDA ClearHT Agar Medium for .

spp. has been the leading cause of bacterial food poisoning in Japan since 2000. The predominant spp.

Mechanistic Insights into the Pathogenesis of Proliferative and Nonproliferative Vitreomacular Traction.

Purpose: To describe the vitreoretinal interface in vitreomacular traction (VMT) by using novel optical coherence tomography (OCT) methods; wide-angle montage, and pseudomotion OCT imaging systems.

Design: Observational case series.

Methods: Wide-angle montage OCT images of horizontal and vertical scans through the fovea were acquired in 50 eyes of 46 consecutive patients with VMT.

Clinical evaluation of steroid ointment for the treatment of mucoceles.

Objective: We examined whether steroid ointment (0.1% dexamethasone) is an effective treatment for mucoceles.

Study Design: Using a retrospective cohort study design, a statistical study was conducted of 91 patients diagnosed with mucoceles at the Department of Dental and Oral Surgery, Saga University Hospital, Saga, Japan, between January 2006 and December 2016.

Clinical Utility of Pourmedia ViGBS Agar Medium for Group B Screening.

Group B (hereinafter GBS) is the main pathogen in neonatal sepsis and meningitis, accounting for approximately one quarter of the cases. 1) Prevention of infection is therefore crucial. The GBS carriage testing of pregnant women is necessary to prevent infections.

Mesenchymal Stem/Stromal Cells Increase Cardiac miR-187-3p Expression in a Polymicrobial Animal Model of Sepsis.

Sepsis-induced myocardial dysfunction (MD) is an important pathophysiological feature of multiorgan failure caused by a dysregulated host response to infection. Patients with MD continue to be managed in intensive care units with limited understanding of the molecular mechanisms controlling disease pathogenesis. Emerging evidences support the use of mesenchymal stem/stromal cell (MSC) therapy for treating critically ill septic patients.

The Effect of Continuous Field Block through Intercostal Muscles after Atrial Septal Defect Closure via a Mini-Right Thoracotomy in Pediatric Patients.

Background: Postoperative pain management in thoracotomy patients often is difficult. Furthermore, pediatric patients present more challenges because of their inability to effectively communicate their pain intensity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of continuous field block through intercostal muscles as postoperative pain management in pediatric thoracotomy.

Catalytic residues, substrate specificity, and role in carbon starvation of the 2-hydroxy FA dioxygenase Mpo1 in yeast.

The yeast protein Mpo1 belongs to a protein family that is widely conserved in bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and plants, and is the only protein of this family whose function has so far been elucidated. Mpo1 is an Fe-dependent dioxygenase that catalyzes the α-oxidation reaction of 2-hydroxy (2-OH) long-chain FAs (LCFAs) produced in the degradation pathway of the long-chain base phytosphingosine. However, several biochemical characteristics of Mpo1, such as its catalytic residues, membrane topology, and substrate specificity, remain unclear.

Food sources are more important than biomagnification on mercury bioaccumulation in marine fishes.

Marine animals often accumulate various harmful substances through the foods they ingest. The bioaccumulation levels of these harmful substances are affected by the degrees of pollution in the food and of biomagnification; however, which of these sources is more important is not well-investigated for mercury (Hg) bioaccumulation. Here we addressed this issue in fishes that inhabit the waters around Minamata Bay, located off the west coast of Kyushu Island in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan.

Comparison of histopathology and preoperative 18F-FDG-PET/CT of osteomyelitis aiming for image guided surgery: A preliminary trial.

Objective: There are currently no robust methods for accurately localizing the infection focus of osteomyelitis. Accumulation of fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) is nonspecific, and it is well-known that it can indicate inflammatory cells and sites of inflammation, and its effectiveness in detecting osteomyelitis has been reported recently. However, the optimal cut-off value for the Standardized Uptake Value (SUV) in detecting the focus of osteomyelitis through 18F-FDG-PET/CT is not known.

Psychological health status among former residents of Tomioka, Fukushima Prefecture and their intention to return 8 years after the disaster at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

The present study aimed to clarify the psychological status of 766 former residents of Tomioka Town, Fukushima Prefecture, and their intent to return (ITR) 8 years after the disaster at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. We investigated their ITR home and their perception of the risk of health effects from radiation exposure. We also evaluated rates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) using a PTSD checklist (PCL-S) and of psychological stress using the patient health questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9).

[The Evaluation of the MRSA Selective Agar Medium Using Chromogenic Enzyme Substrate from Clinical Specimens].

We evaluated MRSA-CI agar (Kyokuto Pharmaceutical Industrial Co., Ltd.) and BD BBL CHROMagar MRSA II agar (BD Japan) for the detection of Methicillin-resistant (MRSA).

PET/computed tomography shows association between subjective pain in knee joints and fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the capability of fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose (F-FDG)-PET/computed tomography (CT) in screening for musculoskeletal inflammation and injury in the knee region.

Methods: The study included 12 subjects (6 men and 6 women) who complained of knee pain at rest and 94 controls who did not. Maximum standardized uptake value (SUV)max was calculated for the right and left knees and compared via a 4-point numerical rating scale (NRS) for subjective knee pain.

Mercury speciation in preserved historical sludge: Potential risk from sludge contained within reclaimed land of Minamata Bay, Japan.

In the latter half of the 1950s, a large amount of methylmercury (MeHg) was discharged directly into Minamata Bay, Japan by a chemical factory, resulting in the contamination of the fish and shellfish. Ultimately, an outbreak of MeHg intoxication, called Minamata disease, occurred. From 1977 to 1988, the Kumamoto Prefectural Government dredged and transferred sediments exceeding 25 μg/g of total mercury (THg, dry basis) into a strictly segregated area of the bay near the wastewater outlet, then this area was landfilled.