Clinical Evaluation of Conventional Human Coronavirus Infection in Adults.

Human coronaviruses (HCoVs) are distributed globally and they cause a range of respiratory symptoms. Since HCoV infection usually causes mild upper respiratory tract disease and currently has no specific therapy, there are limited reports on its features, especially in adults. We aimed to evaluate the features of HCoV infections in clinical settings.

Clinical evaluation of QuantiFERON®-TB Gold Plus directly compared with QuantiFERON®-TB Gold In-Tube and T-Spot®.TB for active pulmonary tuberculosis in the elderly.

Background: Reduced sensitivity of tuberculosis (TB) interferon-γ release assays (IGRAs) among the elderly has been reported, which is presumably due to diminished immune function. We evaluated the clinical performance of QuantiFERON®-TB Gold plus (QFT-Plus) compared with QuantiFERON®-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT-GIT) and T-Spot®.TB (T-SPOT) in the elderly.

A novel method for rapid detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae antigens in blood.

In this study, we used "RAPIRUN(®)Streptococcus pneumoniae HS (otitis media/sinusitis) (RAPIRUN-HS)," a rapid S. pneumoniae antigen detection kit, to investigate methods for detecting S. pneumoniae antigens in blood of 32 bacterial pneumonia patients.

[A TUBERCULOUS PSEUDO-ANEURYSM OF THE ABDOMINAL AORTA COMPLICATED BY MILIARY TUBERCULOSIS].

A 66-year-old man was transferred to our hospital on November 2010 owing to a diagnosis of miliary tuberculosis. Treatment was initially started with INH, RFP, PZA, and EB. However, PZA and EB were discontinued because of their adverse effects.

Estimating the burden of pneumococcal pneumonia among adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of diagnostic techniques.

Background: Pneumococcal pneumonia causes significant morbidity and mortality among adults. Given limitations of diagnostic tests for non-bacteremic pneumococcal pneumonia, most studies report the incidence of bacteremic or invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD), and thus, grossly underestimate the pneumococcal pneumonia burden. We aimed to develop a conceptual and quantitative strategy to estimate the non-bacteremic disease burden among adults with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) using systematic study methods and the availability of a urine antigen assay.

Involvement of galectin-9 in lung eosinophilia in patients with eosinophilic pneumonia.

Background: Although we first found galectin-9 (Gal-9) as an eosinophil chemoattractant, its role in eosinophilic inflammation is still obscure. The purpose of the present study is to clarify the role of Gal-9 in human eosinophilic pulmonary inflammation in comparison with eotaxin (CCL11).

Methods: We measured the levels of Gal-9 and eotaxin in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) of patients with acute and chronic eosinophilic pneumonia (AEP and CEP).

[Evaluation of the severity of community-acquired pneumonia based on the JRS and IDSA/ATS guidelines].

We retrospectively analyzed the severity of community-acquired pneumonia in 293 patients. Based on the Japanese Respiratory Society (JRS) risk stratification guidelines (A-DROP), patients were classified as follows: mild, 74 (25%); moderate, 140 (48%); severe, 53 (18%); and extremely severe, 26 (9%). The mortality of each category was classified as follows: mild, 0 (0%); moderate, 4 (3%); severe, 8 (15%); and extremely severe, 8 (31%).

A novel method for rapid detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae antigen in sputum and its application in adult respiratory tract infections.

A highly sensitive immunochromatography test kit, ODK0501, was developed using specific polyclonal antibodies against the C-polysaccharide moiety of Streptococcus pneumoniae for the rapid detection of S. pneumoniae antigen in sputum samples. The clinical utility of ODK0501 for this detection was evaluated prospectively in 52 adult patients with respiratory infections and compared with that of a urinary antigen detection kit.

Severe Legionnaires' disease successfully treated using a combination of fluoroquinolone, erythromycin, corticosteroid, and sivelestat.

The patient was a 67-year-old man with diabetes mellitus who had been to a hot spring spa a few days before his admission. The diagnosis of Legionella pneumonia was made using a urinary antigen assay. Intravenous pazufloxacin and oral clarithromycin were started.

Accumulation of CXCR3-expressing eosinophils and increased concentration of its ligands (IP10 and Mig) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid of patients with chronic eosinophilic pneumonia.

Background: Since human peripheral eosinophils have been shown to migrate to the CXC chemokine receptor 3 (CXCR3) ligands IFN-gamma-inducible protein 10 (IP10) and monokine induced by IFN-gamma (Mig), this confirms that CXCR3 is functionally expressed on these cells. IP10 expression has been shown to be increased in the airways of asthmatics. Eosinophil accumulations are found in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) from patients with chronic eosinophilic pneumonia (CEP).

[A case of amyopathic dermatomyositis with interstitial pneumonia: successful treatment with a combination of prednisolone and cyclosporin A].

A 53-year-old woman visited our hospital in July 2002 with complaints of skin eruptions on the face and extremities, dry cough and dyspnea. A diagnosis of amyopathic dermatomyositis (ADM) was made on the basis of characteristic skin lesions and skin biopsy findings with slight muscle symptoms and mild elevation of muscle enzymes. Interstitial shadows were observed in both lower lung fields on chest radiographs, and thoracoscopic lung biopsy specimens revealed a diffuse alveolar damage (DAD) pattern.