Publications by authors named "Koichi Yamaguchi"

Objective: The 6-min walk test (6MWT) is a simple test widely used to assess sub-maximal exercise capacity in chronic respiratory diseases. We explored the relationship of 6-min walk distance (6MWD) with measurements of physiological, clinical, radiographic measures in patients with myositis-associated interstitial lung disease (MA-ILD).

Method: We analyzed data from the Abatacept in Myositis Associated Interstitial lung disease (Attack My-ILD) study, a 48-week multicentre randomized trial of patients with anti-synthetase antibodies and active MA-ILD.

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  • The study aimed to investigate variations in clinical features and B cell epitope profiles among anti-MDA5+ dermatomyositis patients from Japan and North America.
  • Using ELISA methods, researchers analyzed antibody responses in a Japanese cohort and compared those findings to an independent cohort from North America, focusing on specific MDA5 antibody subfragments.
  • Results showed distinct antibody recognition patterns between the two groups, with Japanese patients having a higher prevalence of interstitial lung disease and a significant association between certain antibody levels and rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease.
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Objectives: Despite the global health risk of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE), especially carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE), Japan reports a significantly low frequency of CRE with a predominance of IMP-type carbapenemases. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and characteristics of CRE isolated from hospitals in the city of Nara, Japan.

Methods: We obtained 171 CRE isolates from 16 791 Enterobacterales isolated at 23 hospitals in Nara between January 2018 and December 2021.

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Objective: Anti-histidyl-transfer RNA synthetase (Jo-1) antibodies are associated with myositis as well as different extramuscular organ complications comprising the anti-synthetase syndrome. This study aimed to clarify the relationship between anti-Jo-1 epitope recognition patterns and specific clinical features of this syndrome.

Methods: B cell epitope mapping was performed via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 180 patients who were anti-Jo-1 antibody-positive using overlapping peptides/protein fragments spanning the amino-terminal 151 amino acids of Jo-1 as substrate antigens.

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Introduction: Anti-SSA antibodies target two unrelated proteins, Ro52 (E3 ligase) and Ro60 (RNA binding protein). Previous studies indicate that anti-Ro52 antibodies are frequently associated with various myositis-specific autoantibodies (MSAs)-including anti-tRNA synthetase antibodies-and that the coexistence of MSAs and anti-Ro52 antibodies may portend worse clinical outcomes. Although not well-described in the setting of myositis, work from our animal model of HRS (histidyl-tRNA synthetase)-induced myositis suggests that anti-Ro60 antibodies may also be linked to specific MSAs such as anti-HRS/Jo-1.

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Background: The antifibrotic agents pirfenidone and nintedanib have been shown to be effective in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). However, discontinuation of antifibrotic drugs is a major clinical concern because of the lack of alternative treatment options. Therefore, we identified factors that may be useful for predicting the termination of antifibrotic agents.

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  • * The study reviewed 188 SSc patients, focusing on their esophageal function and treatments, finding that approximately 16% had medication-refractory RE despite being on acid-reducing treatments like PPIs and vonoprazan (VPZ).
  • * Key risk factors for medication-refractory RE included the number of esophagogastroduodenoscopies performed and the absence of esophageal contractility, with particularly severe cases linked to high grades of gastroesophageal flap
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Objectives: Anti-melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 (MDA5) antibody-positive (MDA5+) dermatomyositis patients exhibit a variety of clinical features. We therefore investigated whether patterns of B-cell epitope recognition are linked to the clinical course of MDA5+ dermatomyositis.

Methods: Our cross-sectional study used ELISA-based methods to determine the relationship between antibody recognition of overlapping 155 amino acid MDA5 subfragments and clinical features of 24 MDA5+ myositis patients.

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Background: Pre-discharge home assessment visits for elderly hospitalized patients are conducted by the hospital staff to ensure a smooth transition to home care and are effective in preventing falls and reducing the rehospitalization rates. However, the effect of an application that enables the viewing of videos of the patient's home activities during the pre-discharge visit on the multidisciplinary professionals who provide services to the patient has not yet been fully clarified.

Methods: Multidisciplinary professionals at 23 facilities located in western Tottori Prefecture who used a video-sharing application (Patto-Mie Net) were invited to be interview participants.

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  • Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA) is a type of systemic vasculitis that damages small to medium-sized blood vessels and can harm various organs due to high eosinophil levels.
  • Recent treatment guidelines for active non-severe EGPA have included the use of the anti-interleukin-5 antibody mepolizumab, but its effectiveness for severe cases isn't clearly established.
  • In a case study, a patient with EGPA and a serious complication (small intestine perforation) was treated successfully with steroids, immunoglobulin therapy, and mepolizumab, leading to remission, suggesting mepolizumab could be beneficial for severe EGPA cases.
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Understanding climate variability and stability under extremely warm 'greenhouse' conditions in the past is essential for future climate predictions. However, information on millennial-scale (and shorter) climate variability during such periods is scarce, owing to a lack of suitable high-resolution, deep-time archives. Here we present a continuous record of decadal- to orbital-scale continental climate variability from annually laminated lacustrine deposits formed during the late Early Cretaceous (123-120 Ma: late Barremian-early Aptian) in southeastern Mongolia.

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Introduction: Patients with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis and idiopathic interstitial lung diseases (IIPs) are positive for myeloperoxidase (MPO)-ANCA. MPO-ANCA-positive vasculitis mainly comprises microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) and unclassifiable vasculitis. These diseases are frequently complicated by interstitial lung disease (ILD).

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Objective: In children, post-nasal drip (PND)-induced cough is speculated. However, the relationship between PND and cough is still unclear.

Methods: During acute exacerbation of asthma, the number of overnight coughs and the cough pattern were compared in the children with atopic asthma with PND (n = 8) and the children with atopic asthma without PND (n = 27).

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  • - Sarcoidosis, a disease causing granuloma formation in various organs like the lungs, is diagnosed mainly through clinicopathologic findings with traditional markers being ACE and sIL-2R, though new specific markers are needed.
  • - This study found that serum neuron-specific enolase (NSE) levels are elevated in sarcoidosis patients and correlate positively with ACE and sIL-2R levels, with the best diagnostic sensitivity achieved when combining NSE with these traditional markers.
  • - Elevated serum NSE not only differentiates sarcoidosis from small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and other benign conditions but also reflects disease activity and treatment response, showing potential as a marker for diagnosis and monitoring of sarcoidosis.
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  • Global trends emphasize balanced nutrition for health, and a specific drinking water from deep sea water (DSW) offshore Muroto, Japan, has been noted for its health benefits.
  • A study was conducted comparing a mineral water control group with a group drinking this deep sea water (MIU) for 12 weeks, measuring health indicators through questionnaires and biological samples.
  • Results showed that the MIU group experienced increased levels of beneficial short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA), indicating positive impacts on gut health and metabolism.
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  • Obesity is linked to worse outcomes in patients with anti-ARS antibody-related interstitial lung disease (ILD), as it affects lung function and increases disease relapse rates.
  • A study involving 58 patients found that obese individuals had lower lung diffusing capacity and higher fat deposits compared to nonobese patients.
  • The research highlights the importance of measuring chest fat using CT scans to predict ILD relapses, particularly noting that higher levels of certain fat types correlate with increased disease severity.
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Background: For the management of cough diseases in adults, an objective method of evaluating nocturnal cough is required.

Methods: In Study 1, a cough monitoring system was evaluated using 25 adult volunteers. In Study 2, the cough monitoring system was validated using 20 samples from 10 adult patients with cough diseases obtained overnight.

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Introduction: This study aimed to assess the utility of quantitative high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) for determining the clinical course of anti-melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 antibody-positive dermatomyositis-associated interstitial lung disease (MDA5 ILD).

Method: This study retrospectively analyzed the data of 34 patients with MDA5 ILD to determine the association between the clinical findings and extent of ILD via quantitative CT analysis at baseline and short-term follow-up. Quantified HRCT scores were evaluated as the lung severity score (LSS), percentage of opacity, and percentage of high opacity.

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Homogenous single-layer MoSfilms coated with sub-single layer amounts of gold are found to isolate the reaction of methanol with carbon monoxide, the fundamental step toward higher alcohols, from an array of possible surface reactions. Active surfaces were prepared from homogenous single-layer MoSfilms coated with sub-single layer amounts of gold. These gold atoms formed clusters on the MoSsurface.

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Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a risk factor both for the development and treatment failure of lung cancer. In this retrospective study, we analyzed the outcome of carbon-ion radiotherapy (CIRT) in 124 patients with clinical stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), of whom 26 (21%) had radiological signs of pre-existing ILD. ILD was diagnosed retrospectively by a pulmonologist based on critical review of CT-scans.

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Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a global pandemic since its discovery in December 2019, and as the disease continues to evolve, varying complications associated with it continue to arise. In this regard, computed tomography has played an extremely important role in the diagnosis and evaluation of COVID-19 pneumonia and its complications. We encountered a case of a male patient with neurofibromatosis (type I) who developed concurrent pneumothorax and pleural effusion during his recovery period from severe COVID-19 pneumonia.

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Background: Identification of elevation in pulmonary pressures during exercise may provide prognostic and therapeutic implications in patients with connective tissue disease (CTD). Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is common in CTD patients and subtle interstitial abnormalities detected by lung ultrasound could predict exercise-induced pulmonary hypertension (PH).

Methods And Results: Echocardiography and lung ultrasound were performed at rest and bicycle exercise in CTD patients (n = 41) and control subjects without CTD (n = 24).

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Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies-associated vasculitis (AAV) occurs in elderly people, and patients with anti-myeloperoxidase autoantibodies (MPO-ANCA)-positive AAV are often complicated with interstitial lung disease (ILD). This study aimed to evaluate the age-related clinical features of elderly patients with MPO-ANCA-positive AAV-ILD. This study retrospectively investigated 63 patients with MPO-ANCA-positive AAV-ILD, all of whom were 65 years or older at diagnosis.

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