Efficacy of corticosteroid therapy for oxygen-free coronavirus disease 2019-derived pneumonia.

Corticosteroid therapy for oxygen-free coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is not recommended due to its negative prognostic impact, but the efficacy of corticosteroids when limited to COVID-19 pneumonia is unclear. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of corticosteroid monotherapy for patients with COVID-19 pneumonia without supplemental oxygen. We retrospectively reviewed patients with oxygen-free COVID-19 pneumonia at our institute between September 2020 and August 2021 and assessed the use of corticosteroids and the timing of initiation.

An extremely rare complication during carotid artery stenting using a Wallstent: Migration of a stent holder of a Carotid Wallstent.

Background: Carotid artery stenting (CAS) is an established treatment for internal carotid artery stenosis (ICS). The Carotid Wallstent is commonly used as a stent device in CAS procedures. Rare complications associated with the use of the Carotid Wallstent in CAS procedures include delayed shortening and incomplete stent expansion due to displacement of a marker ring.

Spontaneous Cerebrospinal Fluid Rhinorrhea With Meningoencephalocele Recurrence After Placement of a Lumboperitoneal Shunt: A Case Report.

Cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea associated with meningoencephalocele is usually treated surgically. During the perioperative period, cerebrospinal fluid diversion may be employed to control intracranial pressure, but there are few indications for this method. A 51-year-old female presented with cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea associated with meningoencephalocele and underwent surgical repair followed by the placement of a lumboperitoneal shunt.

[Validation of the Qualitative Study Findings using Quantitative Analyses on the Current Status of Pharmacists in Home Health Care in Medium-Sized Areas].

Although the issue of home medical care and pharmacists remains widespread, much of the discussion has concentrated on its state in urban areas. We believe that it is necessary to consider the state of home health care in medium-sized regions, that is separate from its urban form, with a population of approximately 100000. Thus, we conducted a qualitative study in Hikone City, Shiga Prefecture, to identify factors that impede pharmacists involved in home medical care.

The Effectiveness of Tritanium Cages in Preventing Osteolytic Vertebral Endplate Cysts After Lumbar Interbody Fusion.

Objective: Lumbar interbody fusion (LIF) is a common surgical procedure, but postoperative complications, such as osteolytic vertebral endplate cysts, can adversely affect patient outcomes. This study aims to investigate whether tritanium cages (Stryker, Mahwah, New Jersey, USA) are effective in preventing osteolytic vertebral endplate cysts after LIF.

Methods: Clinical data from 8 years (2013-2020) of LIF procedures at our hospital were analyzed.

Initial intravenous immunoglobulin therapy without aspirin for acute Kawasaki disease: a retrospective cohort study with a Bayesian inference.

Objective: To clarify the necessity of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) administration combined with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) therapy in the treatment of acute Kawasaki disease.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: Multicentre.

Predictors of aneurysm shrinkage after flow diversion treatment for internal carotid artery aneurysms: quantitative volume analysis with MRI.

Background And Purpose: Although aneurysm shrinkage often occurs after flow diversion treatment for intracranial aneurysms, no reports have addressed the factors associated with aneurysm shrinkage.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective single-center study was performed to examine patients with unruptured internal carotid artery aneurysms who were treated using flow diversion and followed up by imaging for at least 12 months. The study outcome was aneurysm shrinkage (volume reduction of ≥10%) 12 months after treatment.

Adult cerebral high-grade glioneuronal tumor with perivascular or pseudopapillary growth co-existing with low-grade tumor: a case report.

An unusual, small cell-predominant, high-grade glioneuronal tumor in the occipital lobe of a 49-year-old man that co-existed with a low-grade tumor is reported. The tumor consisted of two distinct components: the major component was a dense proliferation of primitive small cells showing bidirectional neuronal and glial differentiation; and the minor component consisted of a proliferation of well-differentiated astrocytes intermingled with mature neuronal cells. In the former component, perivascular pseudorosette-like or pseudopapillary growth reminiscent of ependymoma or papillary glioneuronal tumor (PGNT), respectively, was prominent, and hypertrophic astrocytic cells were located just outside the central blood vessels.

Treatment with catheter ablation for patients with arrhythmia-induced cardiomyopathy caused by atrial fibrillation promises a good prognosis.

Clinical outcomes after catheter ablation in patients with reduced left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (EF) and atrial fibrillation (AF) remain unclear. This study aimed to explore the clinical outcomes of patients with arrhythmia-induced cardiomyopathy (AIC) and the influence of pharmacological treatment on clinical outcomes in patients with AIC after the procedure. Ninety-six patients with AF with a reduced LVEF (LVEF < 50%, 66.

Effects of door-to-tolvaptan time on short-term clinical outcome in patients with acute heart failure.

Aims: We investigated the effects of door-to-tolvaptan (D2T) time on short-term urine volume and in-hospital clinical outcomes in patients with acute heart failure (AHF).

Methods And Results: Patients with AHF, treated with tolvaptan at two hospitals, were enrolled in this retrospective observational study. The D2T time was defined as the time elapsed from the arrival of a patient at a participating hospital to the first administration of tolvaptan.

Beneficial Impact of "Supercharged" Pectoralis Major Musculocutaneous Flap With Indocyanine Green Angiography on Reconstruction in a Patient at High Risk for Necrosis.

Background: The pectoralis major musculocutaneous (PMMC) flap is a versatile and commonly used technique for reconstruction of the head and neck in patients at high risk in free tissue transfer procedures. In this report, a "supercharged" PMMC flap, in which the lateral thoracic artery was cut, preserved, and anastomosed to the cervical vessels, was developed to stabilize blood flow.

Methods: The supercharged PMMC flap was introduced in a patient who was at high risk for partial necrosis of the flap and underwent surgery for reconstruction of the tongue.

Palliative stenting for malignant colorectal stenosis in the elderly.

Objectives: Self-expandable metal stents are widely used for the treatment of malignant colorectal stenosis (MCS). In elderly individuals with MCS, self-expandable metal stents are often used as a palliative treatment, but prophylactic stent placement is not recommended. We investigated the efficacy and safety of self-expandable metal stents for the elderly in a palliative setting, specifically in a prophylactic setting.

Extremely intricate labyrinthine structures: an electron microscopic observation of peculiar invaginations of the plasma membrane found in secretory meningioma.

Large, extremely intricate labyrinthine structures were observed during an electron microscopic examination of a secretory meningioma that originated in the sphenoid ridge of a 73-year-old man. In many neoplastic cells, these labyrinthine structures formed round-shaped regions within the cytoplasm, and profiles indicated their internal structure consisted of numerous thin fragments of cytoplasm and intervening flocculent material. These labyrinthine structures did not exhibit apparent topographic association with pseudopsammoma bodies, and direct communication with the extracellular space by very thin channels was rarely observed.

Reactive hyperplasia of vascular pericytes in meningioma: immunohistochemical and ultrastructural studies of two cases.

An isolated proliferation of pericytes is a unique vascular reaction seen almost exclusively in the stroma of secretory meningioma. We report the results of immunohistochemical and ultrastructural studies of a pericytic proliferation that was found in two cases of meningioma (a secretory meningioma of the sphenoid ridge and a parasagittal atypical meningioma showing predominantly fibroblastic features). Pericytes had hyperchromatic nuclei and scant cytoplasm, and showed stratification or formed small clusters within the walls of small blood vessels.

Atrial fibrillation in patients with severe aortic stenosis.

Background: There has been no previous report evaluating the long impact of atrial fibrillation (AF) on the clinical outcomes stratified by the initial management [conservative or aortic valve replacement (AVR)] strategies of severe aortic stenosis (AS).

Methods: We analyzed 3815 patients with severe AS enrolled in the CURRENT AS registry. Patients with AF were defined as those having a history of AF when severe AS was found on the index echocardiography.

Developed Circuminfundibular Anastomosis Associated with Vascular Abnormalities.

We report a 74-year-old male patient who presented with left hemiplegia and disturbance of consciousness. Computed tomography revealed diffuse subarachnoid hemorrhage, which was prominent in the right Sylvian and basal cisterns. Digital subtraction angiography revealed absence of the C2 segment of the right internal carotid artery (ICA) and a significantly developed circuminfundibular anastomosis.

Application and usefulness of a new eight-wire basket catheter for endoscopic extraction of small common bile duct stones: A retrospective multicenter study.

Objectives: Distally located small common bile duct stones are often difficult to treat or grasp endoscopically. Therefore, multiple devices, such as baskets or balloon catheters, are frequently used in such cases. However, it is desirable to use a single device for stone extraction from the perspective of cost-effectiveness.