Protective effects of influenza A (H1N1) pandemic 2009 vaccination against the onset of influenza-like illness and asthma exacerbation in Japanese children.

Background: Vaccination against influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 in Japan started in October 2009. Children with asthma are considered as a high-risk group and are recommended to preferentially receive the vaccine.

Objective: To identify the clinical effects of vaccination in Japanese children with and without asthma.

A Report of Three Girls with Antithyroid Drug-Induced Agranulocytosis; Retrospective Analysis of 18 Cases Aged 15 Years or Younger Reported between 1995 and 2009.

Agranulocytosis is an extremely serious, although rare, adverse effect of antithyroid drugs (ATDs), including methimazole (MMI) and propylthiouracil (PTU), in children and adolescents. There are few reports about the characteristics of ATD-induced agranulocytosis in Japanese children and adolescents. This report presents the cases of three girls with ATD-induced agranulocytosis and a retrospective analysis of 18 patients with ATD-induced agranulocytosis, whose cases had been referred to the drug manufacturer, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co.

Expression of the tumor suppressor gene maspin and its significance in intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms of the pancreas.

Background: Maspin is a member of the serpin family of protease inhibitors and is thought to inhibit carcinoma invasion, metastasis, and angiogenesis and induce apoptosis. We examined maspin expression immunohistochemically and assessed its significance in intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN) of the pancreas.

Methods: We examined 39 surgically resected specimens of IPMN that included 17 adenomas (IPMAs), 5 borderline tumors (IPMBs), 4 non-invasive carcinomas (non-invasive IPMCs), and 13 invasive carcinomas (invasive IPMCs).

Vitamin K deficiency bleeding with intracranial hemorrhage: focus on secondary form.

Non-accidental trauma is the leading cause of intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) in infancy. In contrast, ICH as a part of vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB) secondary to hepatobiliary disease is rare, but encountered even in the era of vitamin K (VK) prophylaxis. During 43 months, six cases with ICH were diagnosed as an initial presentation of VKDB.

Liver position in fetal congenital diaphragmatic hernia retains a prognostic value in the era of lung-protective strategy.

Background/purpose: The aims of this study were to analyze the outcomes of fetuses with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) treated by a lung-protective strategy using high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) in a single center with a perinatology service and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) capability and to define the natural history of CDH in the era of lung-protective ventilation.

Methods: A retrospective chart review of 30 neonates with CDH seen between April 2002 and October 2004 was conducted. All fetuses with a prenatal diagnosis were evaluated by fetal magnetic resonance imaging to define the liver position, and those with a significant volume of the liver in the chest were regarded as liver-up.

[Current practice of pediatric MDCT in Japan: survey results of demographics and age-based dose reduction].

Purpose: To assess the current practice of pediatric MDCT in Japan, with particular reference to age-related dose adjustment.

Materials And Methods: During the first three months of 2004, a questionnaire was mailed to 996 institutions, among which listed MDCT users ranged from private hospitals to large university-based hospitals.

Results: We received responses from 348 (34.

Non-gated fetal MRI of umbilical blood flow in an acardiac twin.

Currently, the standard method of diagnosis of twin reversed arterial perfusion (TRAP) sequence is ultrasound imaging. The use of MRI for flow visualization may be a useful adjunct to US imaging for assessing the presence of retrograde blood flow in the acardiac fetus and/or umbilical artery. The technical challenge in fetal MRI flow imaging, however, is that fetal electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring required for flow imaging is currently unavailable in the MRI scanner.