Antithrombotic and ulcerogenic effects of fenflumizole, a new anti-inflammatory imidazole derivative, in rats.

Fenflumizole (2-(2,4-difluorophenyl)-4,5-bis(4-methoxyphenyl) imidazole) was given to rats in a single oral dose of 30 mg/kg. The plasma concentration of fenflumizole reached a peak 2-3 hr after the dosing in non-fasted as well as fasted rats. Two metabolites (demethylation products) of fenflumizole were also detected in the plasma, but only in traces.

Prevalence studies of multiple sclerosis, myasthenia gravis, and myopathies in Kumamoto district, Japan.

The prevalence ratio per 100,000 population of each disease was multiple sclerosis (MS) 1.3, myasthenia gravis (MG) 6.7, and polymyositis (PM) 5.

Structural proteins of the opaque muscle fibers in Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

We studied the structural proteins of the "opaque fibers" (OFs) in muscle biopsies from 12 patients, aged 4 to 24 years, with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The electrophoretic patterns of myofibrillar proteins indicated three groups of opaque fibers: the first (OF a) had an almost normal electrophoretogram, the second (OF b1) showed a clear decrease of 55,000 dalton protein (desmin), and the third (OF b2) exhibited a great reduction in alpha-actinin and desmin. The data suggest that some OFs are pathologic fibers in the degenerative process of Duchenne dystrophy.

High single-dose alternate-day corticosteroid regimens in treatment of polymyositis.

High single-dose alternate-day prednisolone therapy (ADT) was compared with daily-dose prednisolone therapy (DDT) for treatment of polymyositis. Thirty patients with polymyositis were treated with ADT for an average of 33.9 months.

Minamata disease (organic mercury poisoning): neuroradiologic and electrophysiologic studies.

We studied 10 patients with Minamata disease (organic mercury poisoning) who have been followed for over 20 years. CT revealed a bilateral, symmetric, low-density area in the visual cortex and diffuse atrophy of the cerebellar hemispheres and vermis, especially the inferior vermis. Computerized quantitative analysis of the tremor of these patients showed a peculiar frequency of 7.