Cure of Fingertip Necrosis after Median Nerve Block Application in Two Cases of Definite and Probable Systemic Sclerosis.

One patient with systemic sclerosis with index fingertip necrosis and another with probable systemic sclerosis with index and middle fingertip impending necrosis were successfully treated with ultrasound-guided median nerve block application on the affected side. The nailfold temperatures of the affected fingers measured using thermography were below 25°C. Immediately after application, the temperature increased substantially.

First Approval of Generic Mometasone Furoate Nasal Suspension Spray in Japan: Similarities and Differences Between Japan and the USA.

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) in Japan approved the first generic version of Nasonex in February 2018. The Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency requires in vitro, pharmacokinetic, and pharmacodynamic or clinical endpoint data to approve generic nasal spray drug products. However, the MHLW has not published basic principle for approving nasal generic drug products.

Respiration and circulation affected by gas leakage into the abdominal cavity during endoscopic esophageal submucosal dissection after gastrostomy: a case report.

Background: Pneumoperitoneum is a common complication of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG). We report a case of circulatory and respiratory depression due to pneumoperitoneum caused by PEG dislodgement during endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) surgery.

Case Presentation: A 46-year-old man with PEG for dysphagia underwent ESD for esophageal cancer under general anesthesia.

The use of the Sanuki airway™ in three patients with suspected difficult airway.

The Sanuki airway is a single-use intubation oral airway designed for fiberoptic bronchoscope intubation. Sanuki airway has a bite block function and a wide lumen for the tracheal tube to pass through. Here, three cases are reported in which Sanuki airway was used for oral fiberoptic bronchoscope intubation.

An Interscholastic Network To Generate LexA Enhancer Trap Lines in .

Binary expression systems like the LexA-LexAop system provide a powerful experimental tool kit to study gene and tissue function in developmental biology, neurobiology, and physiology. However, the number of well-defined LexA enhancer trap insertions remains limited. In this study, we present the molecular characterization and initial tissue expression analysis of nearly 100 novel StanEx LexA enhancer traps, derived from the index line.

Resection of primary malignant lung melanoma: a case report.

A 74-year-old man presented with chest pain and high-grade fever. Chest radiography revealed a consolidation in the right lower lung lobe, and computed tomography demonstrated atelectasis and infiltration of the right lower lobe, with pleural effusion. Bronchoscopy revealed a tumor occluding the inlet of the lateral/posterior basal segmental bronchus of the right lung, but bronchoscopic biopsy did not lead to a definitive diagnosis.

Late onset adrenal insufficiency after adrenalectomy due to latent nonclassical 21-hydroxylase deficiency: A case report.

Rationale: Adrenal incidentaloma is sometimes complicated with 21-hydroxylase deficiency (21-OHD). Latent nonclassical 21-OHD in incidentaloma is difficult to diagnose. Although adrenalectomy in 21-OHD has been conducted when malignancy could not be excluded, adrenal insufficiency sometimes occurs, and it might not be observed immediately after operation.

Behavioral intention to prevent cervical cancer and related factors among female high school students in Japan.

Aim: This study aimed to examine female high school students' behavioral intention to prevent cervical cancer and related factors.

Methods: The participants were 2158 female high school students at 16 high schools in A prefecture in the Tohoku region in Japan. A self-administered questionnaire was carried out that was developed based on a conceptual framework comprising the Health Belief Model and Theory of Reasoned Action.

Development of a real-time and quantitative thrombus sensor for an extracorporeal centrifugal blood pump by near-infrared light.

We developed an optical thrombus sensor for a monopivot extracorporeal centrifugal blood pump. In this study, we investigated its quantitative performance for thrombus detection in acute animal experiments of left ventricular assist using the pump on pathogen-free pigs. Optical fibers were set in the driver unit of the pump.

Development of an Optical Detector of Thrombus Formation on the Pivot Bearing of a Rotary Blood Pump.

Continuous optical monitoring of thrombus formation in extracorporeal mechanical circulatory support (EMCS) devices will contribute to safe, long-term EMCS. A clinically applicable optical detector must be able to distinguish among the optical characteristics of oxygen saturation (SaO2 ), hematocrit (Hct), and thrombus formation. In vitro studies of spectral changes at wavelengths from 400 to 900 nm associated with SaO2 , Hct, and thrombus formed around the top pivot bearing of a Gyro C1E3 pump were conducted.

Properties of a monopivot centrifugal blood pump manufactured by 3D printing.

An impeller the same geometry as the impeller of a commercial monopivot cardiopulmonary bypass pump was manufactured using 3D printing. The 3D-printed impeller was integrated into the pump casing of the commercially available pump to form a 3D-printed pump model. The surface roughness of the impeller, the hydraulic performance, the axial displacement of the rotating impeller, and the hemolytic properties of the 3D-printed model were measured and compared with those of the commercially available model.

Effect of Impeller Geometry on Lift-Off Characteristics and Rotational Attitude in a Monopivot Centrifugal Blood Pump.

The effect of the flow path geometry of the impeller on the lift-off and tilt of the rotational axis of the impeller against the hydrodynamic force was investigated in a centrifugal blood pump with an impeller supported by a single-contact pivot bearing. Four types of impeller were compared: the FR model with the flow path having both front and rear cutouts on the tip, the F model with the flow path having only a front cutout, the R model with only a rear cutout, and the N model with a straight flow path. First, the axial thrust and the movement about the pivot point, which was loaded on the surface of the impeller, were calculated using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis.

A grasping forceps with a triaxial MEMS tactile sensor for quantification of stresses on organs.

This paper reports on a grasping forceps with a triaxial Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) tactile sensor on a tip. The laparoscopic surgery is minimally invasive because the incisions are smaller than the open surgery. This results in fast recovery.

Effect of impeller flow path on pump performance and impeller stability of the monopivot circulatory pump.

The effect of a cutout on the pump pressure-flow characteristics and the impeller stability was quantified using computational fluid dynamics analysis in order to provide good hemocompatibility of the monopivot extracorporeal circulation pump. As a result, the following findings were clarified. The pump pressure is lower in the cutout model than in the no-cutout model.

Fluid dynamic design for low hemolysis in a hydrodynamically levitated centrifugal blood pump.

We have developed a hydrodynamically levitated centrifugal blood pump for extracorporeal circulatory support as a bridge to decision pump. The impeller is levitated using hydrodynamic bearings without any complicated control circuit or displacement sensor. However, the effect of the outer circumferential velocity and the bearing area on the hemolytic property has not been clarified, even if the bearing gap is same size.

Developing essential rigid-flexible outer sheath to enable novel multi-piercing surgery.

We have developed a new generation device called rigid-flexible outer sheath with multi-piercing surgery (MPS) to solve the issues of tissue closure, triangulation, and platform stability in natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES), and the problems of restricted visual field, organ damage, and removing a resected organ from body in needlescopic surgery (NS). The shape of the flexible outer sheath can be selectively locked by a novel pneumatic shapelocking mechanism. Major features include four directional flexion at the distal end, four working channels, and suction and water jet functions.

3-D endoscope using a single CCD camera and pneumatic vibration mechanism.

Background: During endoscopic surgical procedures, surgeons must manipulate an endoscope inside the body cavity to observe a surgical area while estimating the distance between that area and the surgical instruments by reference to a monitor on which the movement and size of the surgical instruments are displayed in 2-D endoscopic images. Therefore, there is a risk of the endoscope or instruments physically damaging body tissues. To overcome this problem, we developed a Ø5-mm, 3-D endoscope using a single 1/10-inch CCD camera and pneumatic vibration mechanism.

Enhancement of hemocompatibility of the MERA monopivot centrifugal pump: toward medium-term use.

The MERA monopivot centrifugal pump has been developed for use in open-heart surgery, circulatory support, and bridge-to-decision for up to 4 weeks. The pump has a closed-type, 50-mm diameter impeller with four straight paths. The impeller is supported by a monopivot bearing and is driven by a radial-flux magnet-coupling motor.

The utility of hyperthermia for local recurrence of breast cancer.

Background: Hyperthermia has long been used in combination with chemotherapy or radiation therapy for the treatment of superficial malignancies, in part due to its sensitizing capabilities. Patients who suffer from superficial recurrences of breast cancer have poor clinical outcomes. Skin metastases may particularly impair the quality of life due to the physical appearance, odor and bleeding.

Mechanical impulses can control metaphase progression in a mammalian cell.

Chromosome segregation machinery is controlled by mechanochemical regulation. Tension in a mitotic spindle, which is balanced by molecular motors and polymerization-depolymerization dynamics of microtubules, is thought to be essential for determining the timing of chromosome segregation after the establishment of the kinetochore-microtubule attachments. It is not known, however, whether and how applied mechanical forces modulate the tension balance and chemically affect the molecular processes involved in chromosome segregation.

A beam-splitter-type 3-D endoscope for front view and front-diagonal view images.

Purpose: In endoscopic surgery, surgeons must manipulate an endoscope inside the body cavity to observe a large field-of-view while estimating the distance between surgical instruments and the affected area by reference to the size or motion of the surgical instruments in 2-D endoscopic images on a monitor. Therefore, there is a risk of the endoscope or surgical instruments physically damaging body tissues. To overcome this problem, we developed a Ø7- mm 3-D endoscope that can switch between providing front and front-diagonal view 3-D images by simply rotating its sleeves.

Five-year follow-up of treatment outcomes in patients with early-stage breast cancer and clinically negative axillary nodes treated with no lymph node dissection or axillary clearance.

Background: Sentinel lymph node biopsy has steadily replaced axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) for staging clinically node-negative breast cancer. However, ALND remains standard management of the axilla when a tumor-positive sentinel lymph node is identified.

Methods: We identified 460 patients with breast cancer (clinically T1/T2N0M0) from the database for 1999-2004.