Tolerability and efficacy of switching anti-fibrotic treatment from nintedanib to pirfenidone for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Background: In real-world studies, the rate of discontinuation of nintedanib (NT) varies from 4% to 53%. Switching anti-fibrotic treatment in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) has not been adequately investigated, and data on the tolerability and efficacy of changes in anti-fibrotic treatment is limited in clinical practice.

Objective: To identify factors associated with poor continuation of NT, efficacy and predictors of deterioration after switching from NT to pirfenidone (PFD) in patients with IPF.

The role of semaphorin 3A on chondrogenic differentiation.

Osteoblast-derived semaphorin3A (Sema3A) has been reported to be involved in bone protection, and Sema3A knockout mice have been reported to exhibit chondrodysplasia. From these reports, Sema3A is considered to be involved in chondrogenic differentiation and skeletal formation, but there are many unclear points about its function and mechanism in chondrogenic differentiation. This study investigated the pharmacological effects of Sema3A in chondrogenic differentiation.

Head and neck cancer patients show poor oral health as compared to those with other types of cancer.

Purpose: Several studies have found associations between periodontitis and various types of cancer. Since the site of head and neck cancer (HNC) has contiguity or proximity to the oral cavity, it may be particularly influenced by oral inflammation. This study aimed to determine whether HNC patients have poor oral health as compared to those with other types of cancer.

Fifteen-year clinical prognosis and cardiovascular or limb event associated with homocysteine levels in peripheral arterial disease.

Background: There are limited reports on the relationship between plasma homocysteine (Hcy) levels and long-term all-cause death (ACD), cardiovascular events, or limb events in patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD). We examined the relationship between plasma Hcy levels and 15-year these events in PAD patients.

Methods: We performed a prospective cohort study in 955 PAD patients.

Successful baricitinib treatment of refractory anti-synthetase syndrome associated with interstitial lung disease.

A 47-year-old Japanese man was admitted with dyspnoea on exertion (DOE), skin rash and myalgia. Clinical findings of Gottron's sign and mechanic's hands were observed, with increased serum levels of Krebs von den Lungen-6, surfactant protein-D, creatine kinase, and anti-EJ on laboratory tests. In both lungs, chest computed tomography revealed diffuse reticular opacities and lower lobe predominance.

Pleuroparenchymal fibroelastosis in mycobacterium avium complex lung disease.

We report a rare case of pleuroparenchymal fibroelastosis (PPFE) with interstitial lung disease progressed after an onset of mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) lung disease. Clinicians should pay attention to the management for patients with PPFE in MAC lung disease.

Coronavirus disease 2019 vaccination-induced acute exacerbation in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

We report a rare case of acute exacerbation (AE) of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) after coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination. Clinicians should be aware of this COVID-19 vaccination-induced AE in IPF.

Longitudinal effects of estrogen on mandibular growth and changes in cartilage during the growth period in rats.

Estrogen is a steroid hormone that induces skeletal growth and affects endochondral ossification of the long tubular bone growth plate during the growth period. However, the effects of estrogen on endochondral ossification of the mandibular condylar cartilage are unclear. In this study, ovariectomized Wistar/ST rats were used to investigate the longitudinal effects of estrogen on mandibular growth.

Multiple endotracheal metastases of combined small cell lung carcinoma.

We report a very rare case of combined small cell lung carcinoma (C-SCLC) which presented as persistent cough and was due to endotracheal metastases. Clinicians should be aware of this unusual site of metastases from a C-SCLC.

Immunoglobulin G4-positive interstitial pneumonia associated with pleuroparenchymal fibroelastosis.

A 79-year-old former smoking Japanese man was admitted to our hospital with a 2-year history of dry cough and dyspnoea on exertion. High-resolution computed tomography of the chest revealed reticulation and perilobular opacity with bronchial wall thickening and ground-glass opacities (GGOs) in both lungs, in addition to subpleural dense consolidation (pleuroparenchymal fibroelastosis-like lesion; PPFE-like lesion) predominantly in the bilateral upper lobes. Serum immunoglobulin G4 (IgG4) was elevated (348 mg/dl).

Post-coronavirus disease 2019 organizing pneumonia confirmed pathologically by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, has become a global pandemic. Many survivors of serious COVID-19 pneumonia have long-term residual pulmonary disease. However, there is little documentation of the histopathological characteristics of lung sequelae post-COVID-19 and effective treatments.

Eosinophilic bronchiolitis successfully treated with benralizumab.

A 53-year-old non-smoking Japanese woman was admitted to our hospital with a 20-year history of wet cough and dyspnoea on exertion. Bronchial asthma (BA) had been diagnosed 20 years earlier. Although she has been treated with high-dose inhaled corticosteroid, she had experienced frequent exacerbation of BA, and short-term oral corticosteroid bursts were occasionally administered.

Efficacy of early antifibrotic treatment for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Background: Although antifibrotic drugs, including nintedanib and pirfenidone, slow the progression of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), there is little data about the timing of start of antifibrotic treatment in real-world clinical practice. The present study aimed to clarify the efficacy of nintedanib and pirfenidone in patients with early-stage IPF.

Methods: We compared survival and disease progression between patients with IPF with Japanese Respiratory Society (JRS) disease severity system stage I with and without oxygen desaturation on the 6-min walk test (6MWT) and increased the gender-age-physiology (GAP) staging.

Treatment with antifibrotic agents in idiopathic pleuroparenchymal fibroelastosis with usual interstitial pneumonia.

Background: There are no established therapeutic options available for idiopathic pleuroparenchymal fibroelastosis (IPPFE) apart from supportive care and lung transplantation. Furthermore, it is known that IPPFE with a usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) pattern and lower lobe predominance is a disease entity distinct from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). To our knowledge, few studies are available that report on the efficacy of antifibrotic agents for IPPFE with UIP.

Acute exacerbation in chronic bird fancier's lung with pleuroparenchymal fibroelastosis.

A 71-year-old non-smoker woman was admitted to our hospital complaining of a six-month history of dry cough. She had kept java sparrow for nine years and has been raising budgerigars for the previous eight months. High-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) images of the chest revealed reticulonodular lesions predominantly in the bilateral upper lobes.

Mediastinal tumor resection in a patient with spinocerebellar degeneration.

Background: In spinocerebellar degeneration (SCD) patients, general and regional anesthesia may cause postoperative dysfunction of respiratory, nerve and muscle systems. We present the surgical case of thymoma developed in patient with SCD.

Case Presentation: A 47-year-old woman with spinocerebellar degeneration was admitted because of a well-defined mass measuring 48 × 31 mm in anterior mediastinum.

FAK inhibition protects condylar cartilage under excessive mechanical stress.

Objectives: Excessive mechanical stress is assumed to be a major cause of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) osteoarthritis (OA). +Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is a cytoplasmic non-receptor tyrosine kinase involved in a variety of signaling pathways. Little has been reported on the function of FAK in TMJ-OA.

[Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation for Severe Aortic Stenosis with Preexisting Mitral Prosthesis;Report of a Case].

An 81-year-old woman presented with progressive congestive heart failure. Seventeen years before, she had undergone mitral valve replacement with a mechanical prosthesis. Echocardiography revealed severe aortic stenosis with a depressed left ventricular ejection fraction of 32%.

Miliary opacities in pulmonary sarcoidosis.

Pulmonary sarcoidosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of miliary opacities in bilateral upper lobes predominance.

Bronchogenic cyst of the interatrial septum.

Although bronchogenic cysts are the most common primary mediastinal cysts, intracardiac bronchogenic cysts are extremely rare. We report a case of a bronchogenic cyst of the interatrial septum in a 42-year-old woman who presented with recent onset of dyspnea on exertion. Cardiac investigations including transthoracic echocardiography and computed tomography revealed a cystic homogeneous mass in the interatrial septum.

Statins Reduce Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm Growth in Marfan Syndrome Mice via Inhibition of the Ras-Induced ERK (Extracellular Signal-Regulated Kinase) Signaling Pathway.

Background Statins reduce aneurysm growth in mouse models of Marfan syndrome, although the mechanism is unknown. In addition to reducing cholesterol, statins block farnesylation and geranylgeranylation, which participate in membrane-bound G-protein signaling, including Ras. We dissected the prenylation pathway to define the effect of statins on aneurysm reduction.

Autoimmune pulmonary alveolar proteinosis presenting peripheral ground-glass opacities.

Autoimmune pulmonary alveolar proteinosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of peripheral ground-glass opacities.