New Perspective on the Clinical and Laboratory Characteristics of Rheumatoid Pleural Effusion: A 29-Case Series.

Objective Rheumatoid pleural effusion (RPE) usually occurs in middle-aged men. Pleural fluid analyses have revealed high lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels and low pH and glucose levels in RPE. We aimed to investigate the clinical and laboratory features of patients with RPE since the beginning of the 21st century.

Automatic evaluation of atlantoaxial subluxation in rheumatoid arthritis by a deep learning model.

Background: This work aims to develop a deep learning model, assessing atlantoaxial subluxation (AAS) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which can often be ambiguous in clinical practice.

Methods: We collected 4691 X-ray images of the cervical spine of the 906 patients with RA. Among these images, 3480 were used for training the deep learning model, 803 were used for validating the model during the training process, and the remaining 408 were used for testing the performance of the trained model.

A case of Takayasu arteritis complicated with pulmonary infarction.

Takayasu arteritis (TAK) is a vasculitis that causes inflammation in the arterial walls of large blood vessels. The complication rate of pulmonary artery lesion in TAK has been reported to be relatively high. Severe pulmonary artery stenosis can cause pulmonary infarction in rare cases.

Discontinuation of biosimilar infliximab in Japanese patients with rheumatoid arthritis achieving sustained clinical remission or low disease activity during the IFX-SIRIUS STUDY I (the IFX-SIRIUS STUDY II): Study protocol for an interventional, multicenter, open-label, single-arm clinical trial with clinical, ultrasound and biomarker assessments.

Background: The introduction of biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs into clinical practice has dramatically improved the clinical outcomes of individuals with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We are conducting the IFX-SIRIUS STUDY I that evaluates whether switching from originator infliximab (IFX) to its biosimilar, CT-P13, is not inferior in maintaining nonclinical relapse to continue treatment with originator IFX in patients with RA achieving clinical remission. It is the next great issue whether disease activity can be maintained in good condition after discontinuation of CT-P13 because no evidence is available regarding the clinical value of discontinuing biosimilars in patients with RA.

Lupus Aortitis Successfully Treated with Moderate-dose Glucocorticoids: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Lupus aortitis is a rare and potentially life-threatening disorder. Previous studies have reported the utility of high-dose systemic glucocorticoids or surgery as the treatment, although there have been no related controlled trials. We herein report a 49-year-old woman with a 35-year history of systemic lupus erythematosus who was diagnosed with aortitis.

Neurotropin(®) ameliorates chronic pain via induction of brain-derived neurotrophic factor.

Neurotropin (NTP)(®), a non-protein extract isolated from the inflamed skin of rabbits inoculated with vaccinia virus, is used clinically for the treatment of neuropathic pain. Moreover, NTP may activate the descending pain inhibitory system. Depression-like behavior is often complicated by chronic pain.

[A case of gastrointestinal stromal tumor of the stomach which rapidly increased in size over the period of three years].

The patient was a 75-year-old woman. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed a submucosal tumor 2 cm in size on the anterior wall of the cardiac part of the stomach. Three years later, she visited at our hospital with the chief complaints of tarry stool and dizziness.

Tyrosine phosphorylation of vav protooncogene product in primary human myelogenous leukemic cells stimulated by granulocyte colony-stimulating factor.

Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor(G-CSF), but not granulocyte-macrophage CSF(GM-CSF), induced tyrosine phosphorylation of 95-kDa protein in 13 cases of primary human acute myelogenous leukemic cells. Electrophoretic mobility of 95-kDa phosphoprotein and the protooncogene product p95vav was identical. In addition, p95vav was tyrosine-phosphorylated only in G-CSF-stimulated cells.

Prolonged hyperalimentation as a possible cause of renal tubular dysfunction: evaluation of 1,5-anhydro-D-glucitol resorption and N-acetylglucosaminidase excretion in humans.

1. A major polyol found in the sera and other tissues of humans, 1,5-anhydro-D-glucitol, is mainly ingested in the diet and is excreted in urine. We compared the influence of the long-term administration of total parenteral nutrition free of 1,5-anhydro-D-glucitol with that of total enteral nutrition on the serum level of 1,5-anhydro-D-glucitol in 46 patients who could not take food by mouth.

[Penetrating keratoplasty for keratoconus in a case of Down's syndrome].

We report a Down's syndrome patient who underwent penetrating keratoplasty (PKP) surgery. The patient was a 62-year-old female who had Down's syndrome with severe bilateral keratokonus and cataract. Her visual acuity was very poor as she did everything by touch before the surgery.

[Early phase II clinical study of RP56976 (docetaxel) in patients with primary pulmonary cancer. Docetaxel Cooperative Study Group for Lung Cancer].

An early phase II clinical study of RP56976 (Docetaxel), a new anticancer agent of plant origin, was conducted in patients with primary pulmonary cancer as a multicentered study involving 28 Japanese institutions. Docetaxel was administered at an intravenous dose of 60 mg/m2 based on the results of a phase I clinical study, and efficacy and safety were examined. Of the 65 patients enrolled, 57 patients were evaluated to have completed the scheduled course of treatment by the Evaluation Committee.

Prevention of diabetes by thymic hormone in alloxan-treated rats.

We investigated the effects of facteur thymique sérique (FTS), a thymic peptide hormone, on alloxan- and streptozotocin-induced diabetes in rats. Pretreatment with intravenous injection of FTS significantly suppressed both alloxan- and streptozotocin-induced hyperglycemia. The effects of FTS were time dependent.

A rise in antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody in a patient with systemic vasculitis in remission.

We report a 42-year-old man who showed alveolar hemorrhage and glomerulonephritis as well as episcleritis and skin rash. He had an extremely high titer of cytoplasm-staining antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (C-ANCA) and was diagnosed as having systemic vasculitis based on histological findings of kidney and skin biopsies. After immunosuppressive therapy clinical manifestations resolved within several weeks and C-ANCA titers commensurably declined.

Embolotherapy for persistent hemoptysis: the significance of pleural thickening.

Elective embolotherapy for recurrent hemoptysis was evaluated for its effectiveness. Forty embolotherapeutic procedures were performed in 30 patients. In the short term, complete hemostasis was achieved in 16 of 40 procedures (40%) and significant improvement in another 16 procedures (40%).

Estimation of plasma glucose fluctuation with a combination test of hemoglobin A1c and 1,5-anhydroglucitol.

We investigated the effect of plasma glucose fluctuation on hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and plasma 1,5-anhydroglucitol (AG) levels, especially in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). Plasma AG is a new marker that provides sensitive and analytical information on glycemic control. The basic mechanisms underlying both the reduction and recovery of the plasma AG level, ie, the excretion into urine with glucosuria and the amount supplied to the body, were presumed to be similar in IDDM and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) patients.

Origin and disposal of 1,5-anhydroglucitol, a major polyol in the human body.

The origin and disposal of 1,5-anhydro-D-glucitol (AG), one of the main polyols found in the human body, was studied in normal subjects and diabetic patients. AG was detected in various kinds of foods. The mean AG supplement through foods was estimated to be approximately 4.

[Interstitial pneumonia developed after combination chemotherapy with (CDDP, VDS, MMC) and radiotherapy].

Reported is a case of interstitial pneumonia that developed after CDDP, VDS, and MMC combination chemotherapy and radiotherapy. The patient, a 68-year-old male, had received chemotherapy three times, beginning with CDDP + VDS, followed by CDDP, VDS, and MMC, in that sequence, after which he was given radiotherapy. The interstitial pneumonia developed one day after a dose of 54 Gy.

[Radiotherapy combined with cis-diammine-dichloro platinum (II) plus vindesine in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer: a comparison with treatment by radiation alone].

The effect of CDDP + VDS has been evaluated in 39 cases of non-small cell lung cancer, compared with those treated with radiation alone. Nineteen cases consisted of a combined radiation and chemotherapy group, while twenty cases were classed a the radiation therapy only group. CDDP was given at a dosage of 60 to 110 mg/m2 every 4 weeks, and VDS at a dosage of 3 mg/m2 3 times weekly.

[A case of pneumococcal arthritis in a patient with gout].

A 62 year-old man had suffered from gout and mild renal insufficiency since he was 40 years old. He was admitted to our hospital complicated by a productive cough, high fever and a right swollen knee joint. The chest radiographs demonstrated a left upper lobe infiltration shadow.

[Results of surgical treatment in patients aged 80 years and over].

Surgical treatments were performed in 31 patients over 80-year-old with lung cancer. Men were 25 and women were 6, the eldest patient was 92-year-old male. Pneumonectomy was carried out in 3, lobectomy in 19, carinal resection in 1, Segmentectomy in 4, and partial resection of lung in 2.