Management of Cartilage Conduction Hearing Aids in Pediatric Patients.

Forty-nine children who started wearing cartilage conduction hearing aids (CC-HAs) before completing elementary school (17 with bilateral hearing loss and 32 with unilateral hearing loss) were followed-up and examined. The wearing and utilization status of the CC-HA and its progress to date were evaluated. In addition, 33 participants who purchased the CC-HAs were interviewed to assess the wearing effect.

Prognostic Factors Associated With Mortality of Patients With COVID-19 Requiring Ventilator Management: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Aim There are few reports on the prognostic factors associated with mortality in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients with critical disease. This study assessed prognostic factors associated with mortality of patients with critical COVID-19 who required ventilator management. Methods This single-center, retrospective cohort study used medical record data of COVID-19 patients admitted to an emergency ICU at a hospital in Japan between March 1, 2020 and September 30, 2021, and provided with ventilator management.

Protocol for laparoscopic cholecystectomy: Is it rocket science?

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) does not require advanced techniques, and its performance has therefore rapidly spread worldwide. However, the rate of biliary injuries has not decreased. The concept of the critical view of safety (CVS) was first documented two decades ago.

Significance of proximal tubular metabolism of advanced glycation end products in kidney diseases.

Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are formed by the nonenzymatic Maillard reaction between sugars and proteins. Low-molecular weight AGEs are filtered by renal glomeruli and then reabsorbed and metabolized by proximal tubule cells (PTCs). High-molecular weight AGEs are also delivered to PTCs in proteinuric states.

Evidence for megalin-mediated proximal tubular uptake of L-FABP, a carrier of potentially nephrotoxic molecules.

Liver-type fatty acid binding protein (L-FABP) binds with high affinity to hydrophobic molecules including free fatty acid, bile acid and bilirubin, which are potentially nephrotoxic, and is involved in their metabolism mainly in hepatocytes. L-FABP is released into the circulation, and patients with liver damage have an elevated plasma L-FABP level. L-FABP is also present in renal tubules; however, the precise localization of L-FABP and its potential role in the renal tubules are not known.

Evidence indicating that renal tubular metabolism of leptin is mediated by megalin but not by the leptin receptors.

Leptin is secreted by adipocytes and is a circulating factor that regulates food intake and energy expenditure. Its serum level is elevated in patients with renal failure and has been suggested to be associated with malnutritional factors in these patients. Leptin has been suggested to be primarily metabolized by the kidneys, although the precise molecular mechanisms are not known.

Hypersensitivity to paraoxybenzoic Acid esters (parabens) in a dialysis patient.

A 24-year-old woman undergoing chronic dialysis therapy who had been diagnosed as having 'heparin allergy' presented acute allergic reaction after the intracatheter injection of a heparin agent. Further investigation revealed that mild eosinophilia had persisted for more than 3 years before this incidence despite avoiding the use of heparin agents. The leukocyte migration inhibition test (LMIT) showed that heparin agent A which was used for the patient showed positive reaction while heparin agent B which was not used for the patient showed a negative reaction.