Balloon dilatation followed by triamcinolone acetonide injection for colostomy stenosis: A case report.

Introduction: Stenosis is a serious complication associated with stomas. The initial treatment for stoma stenosis is mainly the finger-bougie technique or balloon dilatation, and recurrence requires stomal reconstruction. However, the use of local triamcinolone injections for treating stoma stenosis has not been reported.

Data-driven automated control algorithm for floating-zone crystal growth derived by reinforcement learning.

The complete automation of materials manufacturing with high productivity is a key problem in some materials processing. In floating zone (FZ) crystal growth, which is a manufacturing process for semiconductor wafers such as silicon, an operator adaptively controls the input parameters in accordance with the state of the crystal growth process. Since the operation dynamics of FZ crystal growth are complicated, automation is often difficult, and usually the process is manually controlled.

Identification of Two Phenanthrene Derivatives from Australasian Allied Species in Genus Dendrobium.

Genus Dendrobium (Orchidaceae) contains numerous species. Phylogenetic analyses based on morphological characteristics and DNA sequences indicated that this genus is divided into two major groups: Asian and Australasian clades. On the other hand, little is known about the phytochemical differences and similarities among the species in each clade.

Introducing the concept of modern depression in Japan; an international case vignette survey.

Aim: Japanese psychiatrists have increasingly reported patients with depression that does not seem to fit the criteria of the ICD-10 and the DSM-IV, and which has recently been called modern type depression (MTD). We explored whether MTD is frequently seen in Japan and also in other countries, and if so, how patients with MTD are diagnosed and treated.

Methods: The questionnaires, with two case vignettes (traditional type depression (TTD) and MTD), were sent to psychiatrists in Australia, Bangladesh, India, Iran, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and the USA.

[Views on the new psychiatric specialist certification system from the perspective of those experiencing the postgraduate psychiatric training system in Japan].

The psychiatric specialist certification system of the Japanese Society of Psychiatry and Neurology was established in 2005, with a transitional period that ran until 2008. A three-year postgraduate training scheme was started in connection with the new psychiatric specialist certification system, and the first formal examination under the new system was held in 2010. A resident desiring certification as a psychiatric specialist must purchase a psychiatric specialist certification handbook and present it when taking the examination.

[Advances of neuroimaging research and the development of pathophysiology hypothesis for obsessive-compulsive disorder].

Hypotheses of pathophysiology in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have developed in parallel with advances in neuroimaging. Based on findings from early PET and SPECT studies evaluating cerebral blood flow and glucose metabolism, one theory proposed involvement of the orbitofrontal-striatum-thalamus loop (the "OCD loop"), which is relevant to the enforced learning and maintenance of OC symptoms. This OCD loop hypothesis has been revised in accordance with advances in neuroimaging techniques and the accumulation of findings.

Reduced gray matter volume of dorsal cingulate cortex in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder: a voxel-based morphometric study.

Aims: Previous morphometric studies using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have revealed structural brain abnormalities in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The aim of the present study was to investigate the alterations in brain structure of patients with OCD using a voxel-based morphometry (VBM) method.

Methods: Sixteen patients with OCD free of comorbid major depression, and 32 sex- and age-matched healthy subjects underwent MRI using a 1.

Decreased binding of [11C]NNC112 and [11C]SCH23390 in patients with chronic schizophrenia.

Aims: Abnormality of cognitive function in schizophrenia has been suggested to be related to dopamine D1 receptor. However, the results of previous positron emission tomography (PET) studies of dopamine D1 receptor in schizophrenia were not consistent.

Main Methods: In this study, six patients with schizophrenia in severe residual phase with chronic antipsychotic treatment and twelve healthy age-matched controls participated.

Peripheral benzodiazepine receptors in patients with chronic schizophrenia: a PET study with [11C]DAA1106.

Inflammatory/immunological process and glial contribution are suggested in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. We investigated peripheral benzodiazepine receptors in brains of patients with chronic schizophrenia, which were reported to be located on mitochondria of glial cells, using [11C]DAA1106 with positron emission tomography. Fourteen patients and 14 age- and sex-matched normal controls participated in this study.

Japan Young Psychiatrists Organization (JYPO) welcomes participants from overseas to the Course for Academic Development of Psychiatrists (CADP).

Japan Young Psychiatrists Organization was founded in 2002. The Course for Academic Development of Psychiatrists (CADP) held in 2001 was the momentum to establish JYPO. CADP is the course designed by Professor N.

Reduced serotonin transporter binding in the insular cortex in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder: a [11C]DASB PET study.

The serotonin transporter (5-HTT) and other markers of the serotonergic system have been of interest in the pathophysiology of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Previous studies using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) with [(123)I]beta-CIT or positron emission tomography (PET) with [(11)C]McN5652 have not shown consistent findings about 5-HTT in OCD patients. The aim of the present study was to investigate 5-HTT binding using [(11)C]DASB, which has higher selectivity or specific binding-to-nonspecific binding ratios for 5-HTT compared to the aforementioned radioligands.

Regional dopamine synthesis in patients with schizophrenia using L-[beta-11C]DOPA PET.

The dopamine hypothesis has been the most widely known theory concerning schizophrenia. However, the exact mechanism including presynaptic dopaminergic activity and its relationship with symptom severity still remains to be revealed. We measured presynaptic dopamine synthesis using positron emission tomography (PET) with L-[beta-(11)C]DOPA in 18 patients with schizophrenia (14 drug-naive and 4 drug-free patients) and 20 control participants.

Alteration of fractional anisotropy and apparent diffusion coefficient in obsessive-compulsive disorder: a diffusion tensor imaging study.

Background: Abnormalities of fractional anisotropy (FA) have been reported in previous diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). However, there are some inconsistencies in the results and the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) has not been investigated. The goal of this study was to investigate white matter abnormalities and water diffusivity, as reflected by FA and ADC, using DTI in patients with OCD.

Measurement of glycine binding site of N-methyl-D-asparate receptors in living human brain using 4-acetoxy derivative of L-703,717, 4-acetoxy-7-chloro-3-[3-(4-[11c] methoxybenzyl) phenyl]-2(1H)-quinolone (AcL703) with positron emission tomography.

N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are of major interest in brain functions and neuropsychiatric disorders. However, at present there are few suitable radioligands for in vivo imaging of NMDA receptors. 7-choloro-4-hydroxy-3-[3-(4-methoxybenzyl) phenyl]-2(1H)-quinolone (L-703,717) is one of the potent ligands for the glycine-binding site of NMDA receptors.

Laterality and aging of thalamic subregions measured by diffusion tensor imaging.

Thalamic nuclei are comprised of fibers connecting associated cortical regions, and abnormalities of the thalamus are correlated with abnormalities in cognition and behavior. Some previous studies showed the laterality of the whole thalamus and the regional differences among thalamic nuclei. This led us to assess regional characteristics in five major subregions of both sides of the thalamus using diffusion-tensor imaging.

Functional organization of monkey brain for abstract operation.

When humans manipulate a control device under operational rules, with the goal of indirectly controlling a remote tool to achieve a desired outcome, they may rely on the power of internal representation to organize individual moves of the controller and tool into a set of sequences by mapping the motor space among hand, controller and tool. We recently used functional brain imaging (PET) to investigate activations in monkey brain associated with joystick-controlled remote operation of a shovel to obtain food. Activated areas included the prefrontal cortex, posterior parietal cortex and cerebellum, regardless of the rules relating movements of the joystick to those of the shovel (Obayashi et al.

Regional cerebral blood flow changes associated with interoceptive awareness in the recovery process of anorexia nervosa.

Background: An abnormality in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in anorexia nervosa (AN) patients has been reported. There are very few studies that have investigated the rCBF changes in the recovery process of AN.

Methods: For eight female AN patients, we performed (123)I-IMP single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and four psychological assessments (Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI), Eating Attitude Test (EAT), Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI)) both before and after inpatient-behavioral therapy.

Quantitative analyses of 18F-FEDAA1106 binding to peripheral benzodiazepine receptors in living human brain.

Unlabelled: N-(5-Fluoro-2-phenoxyphenyl)-N-(2-(18)F-fluoroethyl-5-methoxybenzyl)acetamide ((18)F-FEDAA1106) is a potential PET ligand with highly selective and specific binding to peripheral benzodiazepine receptor (PBR). It has been reported that the regional density of PBR in the brain is increased in several neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders. Thus, a reliable tracer method for evaluating PBR would be of use clinically and for research.

[In vivo evaluation of expressed protein function by PET].

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) allows in vivo visualization of the expression and function of protein using a radioligand. Quantitative analysis of serotonin transporter, receptors, and the function of P-Glycoprotein has been performed in living human brains. Furthermore, the relationship between the phenotype of those proteins and their genetic polymorphism has also been investigated.