Positive Changes in Body Composition and Profiles of Individuals with Diabetes 3 Years Following Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy in Japanese Patients with Obesity.

Background And Objectives: We analyzed the changes in obesity, glucose metabolism, and body composition over a 3-year period in Japanese patients with obesity following laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG).

Methods: Body weight, parameters related to diabetes such as glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), and electrical impedance analysis were used to assess body composition in forty-eight Japanese patients with obesity before surgery and 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, and 3 years after LSG.

Results: At 6 months, 1, 2, and 3 years post-LSG, there were significant reductions in body weight, body mass index, blood pressure, fasting plasma glucose, triglyceride, and HbA1c levels.

Antihypertensive effects and changes in extracellular water content by mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists in patients with primary aldosteronism.

In primary aldosteronism (PA), non-suppressible excessive aldosterone secretion due to dietary salt intake significantly contributes to hypertension and cardiovascular complications. Blocking the overactivation of mineralocorticoid receptors (MRs) with mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs) is a cornerstone for the medical treatment of PA. However, the role of MRAs in controlling hypertension remains unclear.

Susceptibility to recombinant SARS-CoV-2 spike protein entry in the lungs of high-fat diet-induced obese mice.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Obesity is a major risk factor for the development of COVID-19. Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is an essential receptor for cell entry of SARS-CoV-2.

Effects of esaxerenone on blood pressure, urinary albumin excretion, serum levels of NT-proBNP, and quality of life in patients with primary aldosteronism.

Primary aldosteronism (PA) is typically managed with mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs) barring adrenalectomy. The efficacy of esaxerenone, a nonsteroidal MRA, were explored in patients with PA. Various parameters such as the urinary albumin to creatinine ratio (UACR) and serum levels of N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) were evaluated in 25 PA patients before and 3 and 6 months after esaxerenone treatment.

Clinical significance of colonoscopy before laparoscopic bariatric/metabolic surgery in Japanese patients.

Purpose: Obesity is known to be associated with colorectal adenoma (CRA) and colorectal cancer (CRC); yet colonoscopy is not considered an essential preoperative evaluation before bariatric/metabolic surgery. The aim of this study was to clarify the clinical significance of preoperative colonoscopy for obese Japanese patients.

Methods: The subjects of this retrospective study were 114 patients who underwent screening colonoscopy before bariatric/metabolic surgery.

Pitfalls in the diagnosis and treatment of a hypertensive patient with unilateral primary aldosteronism and contralateral pheochromocytoma: a case report.

Background: Primary aldosteronism (PA) is a common cause of secondary hypertension, whereas pheochromocytoma is a rare cause of it. Thus, concomitant PA and pheochromocytoma is a very rare condition.

Case Presentation: A 52-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital with suspected PA based on the presence of hypertension, spontaneous hypokalemia, and a high aldosterone-to-renin ratio.

Factors Associated with Relapse of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus after Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy in Japanese Subjects: A Subgroup Analysis of J-SMART Study.

Introduction: Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) for morbidly obese patients often results in remission of type 2 diabetes (T2DM), but diabetes relapses in some of those patients. The frequency of T2DM relapse in Asians and the factors involved have not been adequately investigated.

Methods: The J-SMART study was conducted on 322 Japanese subjects with body mass index (BMI) ≥32 kg/m2 who underwent LSG at 10 accredited centers in Japan between 2011 and 2014.

The Relationship Between Edema and Body Functions in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease: A Preliminary Study.

Introduction: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is known to be a risk factor for falls. In addition, numerous factors such as impaired body balance and loss of muscle mass were reported as risk factors for falls. Patients with CKD often have edema in their lower extremes.

Characteristics of Childhood Onset and Post-Puberty Onset Obesity and Weight Regain after Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy in Japanese Subjects: A Subgroup Analysis of J-SMART.

Introduction: The psychosocial background of subjects with severe obesity developed from childhood onset obesity (CO) and their outcomes after bariatric surgery have not been fully investigated.

Methods: 305 subjects were enrolled in the J-SMART study, which examined the effects of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) in Japan, and categorized into two groups: CO defined as onset up to 13 years of age (CO group) and post-puberty onset obesity defined as onset after 13 years of age (PPO group). The subjects were followed up for at least 2 years and up to 5 years after LSG.

Re-Assessment of the Oral Salt Loading Test Using a New Chemiluminescent Enzyme Immunoassay Based on a Two-Step Sandwich Method to Measure 24-Hour Urine Aldosterone Excretion.

Since April 2021, the plasma aldosterone concentration has been measured by chemiluminescent enzyme immunoassay (CLEIA) in Japan. In the present study, we developed a new CLEIA using a two-step sandwich method to measure the 24-hour urine aldosterone level. We collected 115 urine samples and measured 24-hour urine aldosterone levels employing radioimmunoassay (RIA), CLEIA, and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).

Adrenal Vein Sampling With Gadolinium Contrast Medium in a Patient With Florid Primary Aldosteronism and Iodine Allergy.

We describe a 35-year-old woman who was allergic to iodine contrast medium and was diagnosed with primary aldosteronism (PA) based on functional confirmatory tests. She was suspected to have unilateral PA because of marked hypertension, spontaneous hypokalemia, high plasma aldosterone, reduced plasma renin activity, and a right hypodense adrenal tumor. She wanted to become pregnant and requested adrenalectomy instead of medical treatment with mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists.

Dopamine-Secreting Pheochromocytoma and Paraganglioma.

Predominantly or exclusively dopamine-secreting pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma are very rare. We report a 64-year-old woman with an adrenal incidentaloma. She was normotensive and had no symptoms of catecholamine excess.

subsp. bacteraemia in a patient with liver cirrhosis.

subsp. is a family of and exists in the marine environment. The organism rarely causes soft-tissue infection in humans; moreover, most of the infected individuals have a history of fishing or exposure to brackish water.

Background characteristics and diabetes remission after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes stratified by BMI: subgroup analysis of J-SMART.

Aim: The J-SMART study was the first national survey of Japanese patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG). We performed a subgroup analysis of J-SMART focusing on the differences in patient background and diabetes remission between patients with BMI 32-34.9 kg/m and those with higher BMI.

Predictors of early withdrawal from follow-up visits after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy in a Japanese institution.

Purpose: Postoperative weight loss is related to postoperative adherence to follow-up after bariatric/metabolic surgery, but many patients stop attending follow-up visits early. The aim of this study was to clarify predictors of early withdrawal from follow-up after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) in a Japanese institution.

Methods: One hundred and fifty-three patients who underwent LSG were retrospectively included in this study.

Quality of Life of Primary Aldosteronism Patients by Mineralocorticoid Receptor Antagonists.

Context: Although primary aldosteronism (PA) reduces quality of life (QOL), there have been no reports on whether treatment with a mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist (MRA) improves QOL in Japanese PA patients.

Objective: Using the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), we compared the QOL of PA patients before and after treatment and evaluated whether the effectiveness of MRAs differs by sex and serum potassium level.

Methods: In 50 patients diagnosed with PA (with or without hypokalemia) and treated with an MRA, the SF-36 scores, blood pressure, and clinical features were assessed before, and 3 and 6 months after treatment.

Development of a New Chemiluminescent Enzyme Immunoassay Using a Two-Step Sandwich Method for Measuring Aldosterone Concentrations.

In the present study, we developed a new chemiluminescent enzyme immunoassay (CLEIA) using a two-step sandwich method to measure aldosterone concentrations. We investigated serum and plasma aldosterone concentrations in 75 blood samples from 27 patients using a radioimmunoassay (RIA) and the CLEIA (with current and newly improved reagents) as well as liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Based on the results of the Passing-Bablok regression analysis, the aldosterone levels measured using CLEIA with the new reagents and those measured by LC-MS/MS were found to be significantly correlated (slope, 0.

-Tocopherol suppresses hepatic steatosis by increasing CPT-1 expression in a mouse model of diet-induced nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

Aim: Antioxidant therapy for with vitamin E appears to be effective for the treatment of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease　(NAFLD). However, the mechanism of action and optimal therapeutic dosage is unclear. The present study was undertaken to examine whether the effects of α-tocopherol (α-Toc) on NAFLD are dose-dependent in a diet-induced obese model.

Endoscopic intragastric balloon therapy for 15 years in Japan: Results of nationwide surveys.

Introduction: Endoscopic intragastric balloon (IGB) placement has been performed in Japan since 2004. The nationwide surveys were repeatedly carried out to confirm the effectiveness and safety of IGB in Japan. We herein present the accumulated results.