Establishment and clinical impacts of decision-support system for older patients with aortic valve stenosis: A retrospective observational study.

Objectives: Treatment decisions for severe aortic stenosis (AS) are complex, since there are two active and comparable options: transcatheter aortic valve implantation and surgical aortic valve replacement. The disease predominantly affects older individuals, who are frequently comorbid with from cognitive impairment. This study aimed to establish a screening-triggered system to assess the decision-making capacity of patients with AS, support their decision-making, and facilitate referrals to specialists when necessary.

A 25-year clonal resurrection in adult T-cell leukemia-lymphoma relapse.

Here, we report a rare case of relapsed adult T-cell leukemia-lymphoma (ATL) with evidence of clonal relapse 26 years after initial diagnosis. The patient had been diagnosed with an aggressive form of lymphoma-type ATL 26 years prior and did not receive further ATL treatment for approximately 26 years after achieving complete remission. We used nested PCR to identify the amplification of ATL clone-specific accumulation sites in DNA from hematoxylin and eosin-stained specimens from the patient.

Simultaneous bilateral total hip arthroplasty results in smaller Leg length discrepancy than staged bilateral procedures.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to compare leg length discrepancies (LLD) between simultaneous and staged bilateral total hip arthroplasty (BTHA).

Materials And Methods: This retrospective cohort study included 150 consecutive patients who underwent BTHA (60 simultaneous and 90 staged BTHA). To adjust for preoperative patient characteristics between groups, 1:1 propensity score matching was performed based on age, sex, body mass index, American Society of Anesthesiologists Physical Status, Tönnis classification, Crowe classification, preoperative range of motion (flexion and abduction), LLD, and Harris Hip Score (HHS).

Neuronal substance P-driven MRGPRX2-dependent mast cell degranulation products differentially promote vascular permeability.

Mas-related G protein-coupled receptor b2 (Mrgprb2) binding to its cationic endogenous and exogenous ligands induces mast cell degranulation and promotes inflammation in mice. However, the physiological roles of its human homologue MRGPRX2 remain unclear. Here we aimed to elucidate the mechanisms by which MRGPRX2 regulates vascular permeability, and generated MRGPRX2 knock-in (MRGPRX2-KI) and Mrgprb2 knockout (Mrgprb2-KO) mice.

Clinical significance of NOTCH1 and FBXW7 alterations in adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma.

Here, we investigated the clinical significance of NOTCH1 and FBXW7 alterations for adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL) treatment outcomes. NOTCH1 alterations were identified in 37 (14.4%) of 257 patients, of which 33 were single nucleotide variants/insertion-deletions in the PEST domain, and 7 were in the heterodimerization or LIN-12/Notch repeats domains.

Lack of Evidence for Transmission of Atypical H-Type Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy Prions (H-BSE Prions) by Intracranial and Oral Challenges to Nonhuman Primates.

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is a prion disease in cattle caused by classical-type (C-), L-type (L-), or H-type (H-) BSE prions. While C-BSE prions are zoonotic agents responsible for variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, L- and H-BSE prions are believed not to be connected to human prion diseases. However, L-BSE prions have been shown to transmit to cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis), suggesting they may have zoonotic potential.

Predialysis central arterial waveform and blood pressure changes during hemodialysis.

To investigate the predictive value of the central arterial waveform for intradialytic blood pressure (BP) change, a total of 152 hemodialysis patients (mean age 68 years) on a thrice-weekly hemodialysis schedule were enrolled, and at both the first and second session of the week, BP and central arterial waveform were measured every 30 min during hemodialysis. In both sessions, a 1-standard deviation increase in baseline subendocardial viability ratio (SEVR), an index of subendocardial perfusion, as well as in baseline systolic BP (SBP) was an independent predictor of maximum SBP decrease ≥ 30 mmHg during hemodialysis. When divided into four groups based on the respective median level of SEVR in the SBP ≥ median and SBP < median groups, intradialytic SBP change was different among the subgroups.

Comparative outcomes of various transplantation platforms, highlighting haploidentical transplants with post-transplantation cyclophosphamide for adult T-cell leukaemia/lymphoma.

This study retrospectively compared outcomes of various allogeneic haematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) platforms in patients with adult T-cell leukaemia/lymphoma. Platforms included human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-haploidentical-related donors using post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCY), HLA-matched related donors (MRD), HLA-matched unrelated donors (MUD) and cord blood transplantation (CBT). Patients who underwent their first allo-HCT between 2016 and 2021 were included.

A Web-Based Education Program About Primary Palliative Care for Heart Failure: A Study Protocol of Wait-Listed Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: The number of patients with heart failure (HF) is rapidly increasing as palliative care is being integrated into HF management and the need for a nursing workforce to meet these demands grows. To address this, we have developed a Web-based educational program on primary palliative care for HF among general registered nurses caring for patients with HF in Japan.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the program's effectiveness on nurse-reported palliative care practice, difficulty, and knowledge.

Recovery of physical function, muscle mass, and quality of life in patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

This study aimed to investigate the recovery of physical function, muscle mass, and quality of life (QOL) in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) patients 1 year after the procedure. A total of 71 patients who underwent allo-HSCT at our institution between February 2010 and June 2020, for whom a physical therapy assessment could be performed before allo-HSCT, at discharge, and 1 year after the procedure, were included. Exercise therapy during hospitalization was provided individually by a physical therapist, and exercise was self-administered after discharge.

Real-world study comparing the efficacy of Janus kinase inhibitors in patients with difficult-to-treat rheumatoid arthritis.

Objective: This study aimed to analyze the clinical efficacy of JAK inhibitors in difficult-to-treat rheumatoid arthritis (D2TRA) and non-D2TRA patients and evaluate the factors influencing their efficacy using real-world data.

Method: Here, 159 JAK inhibitor-treated patients with rheumatoid arthritis were categorized into D2TRA and non-D2TRA groups. Data including the Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI) at initiation and 6 months after drug administration, drug retention months, and reason for discontinuation due to toxic adverse events were collected.

The medullary cavity morphology of the proximal femur influences the fixation pattern of the rectangular tapered short stem in total hip arthroplasty.

Introduction: This study aimed to evaluate differences in the pattern of fixation with a rectangular tapered short stem (Fitmore stem) due to proximal femoral medullary cavity morphology based on periprosthetic bone mineral density (BMD) and radiological findings.

Materials And Methods: We analyzed 105 consecutive patients (Dorr type A, 18; Dorr type B, 66; Dorr type C, 21) who underwent total hip arthroplasty using a Fitmore stem. Periprosthetic BMD was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry from 1 to 24 months postoperatively and radiological analysis was performed.

Comparisons of magnetic resonance imaging, histopathological and Ki-67 labeling index findings in a single myxofibrosarcoma: a case report.

Background: Myxofibrosarcoma is a myxoid soft tissue sarcoma showing T2 high intensity on magnetic resonance imaging. However, myxofibrosarcoma is a heterogeneous sarcoma with both myxoid and cellular portions. Magnetic resonance imaging findings were obtained MRI findings for comparison with histological and Ki-67 immunohistochemical features, in different portions of one myxofibrosarcoma.

Pregnancy and childbirth in Takayasu arteritis in Japan: A nationwide retrospective study.

Objectives: This study aimed to understand the status quo of medical treatments of the primary disease and pregnancy outcomes in patients with Takayasu arteritis (TAK) and children's birth outcomes.

Methods: This study retrospectively enrolled patients with TAK who conceived after the disease onset and were managed at medical facilities participating in the Japan Research Committee of the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare for Intractable Vasculitis.

Results: This study enrolled 51 cases and 68 pregnancies 2019-2021.

Comparison of short-term clinical results between modified kinematically-aligned and guided motion bicruciate stabilized total knee arthroplasty.

Background: Both kinematically-aligned (KA) total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and bicruciate stabilized (BCS) TKA aim to reproduce the physiological knee kinematics. In this study, we compared the femoro-tibial component rotational mismatch between patients who underwent modified KA-TKA and those who received guided-motion BCS-TKA, and its influence on the clinical outcomes.

Methods: In this retrospective study, 77 consecutive patients were included and divided into two groups: subjects who underwent modified KA-TKA with Persona (KA Group; n = 42) and those who received BCS-TKA with JOURNEY II (BCS group; n = 35).

Leptin gene expression in the brain is associated with the physiological onset of estivation in western sand lance Ammodytes japonicus.

Dormancy is an essential ecological characteristic for the survival of organisms that experience harsh environments. Although factors that initiate dormancy vary, suppression or cessation of feeding activities are common among taxa. To distinguish between extrinsic and intrinsic causes of metabolic reduction, we focused on estivation, which occurs in summer when the feeding activity is generally enhanced.