Effect of cardiac rehabilitation on progression to long-term care: A clinical and economic longitudinal study in Japan.

Background: The social burden of nursing care is increasing with age, particularly for patients with heart failure who often require intensive care. This study aimed to clarify the relationship between nursing care needs and the clinical status of patients with a history of cardiovascular disease, focusing on the benefits of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) in reducing these needs.

Methods: This single-gate, multicenter, retrospective observational study included patients of all ages with a history of hospitalization for cardiovascular diseases using government-administered insurance claims and health examination data.

Excimer LASER coronary atherectomy for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: Insights from a multicenter registry.

Background: Excimer laser coronary atherectomy (ELCA) is used for thrombotic culprit lesions in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), but its effectiveness is still unclear.

Methods: Consecutive patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention within 24 h of onset were retrospectively investigated. Patients were divided into ELCA and non-ELCA groups.

Vaginal assisted NOTES hysterectomy for large uterus using the da Vinci SP.

Objective: Recent advancements of minimally invasive gynecologic surgery have led to the development of transvaginal natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery (vNOTES) [1,2]. Robot-assisted vNOTES has also been explored as a method providing accurate and fine surgical procedures with improved ergonomics, visualization, wristed instruments, elimination of the hand tremor [3,4]. The objective of this video is to demonstrate the technical and anatomical highlights of a vaginal assisted NOTES hysterectomy (VANH) using the da Vinci SP (SP).

A case of Staphylococcus saprophyticus bacteremia caused by obstructive pyelonephritis.

Herein, we present the case of a 64-year-old woman diagnosed with left calculous pyelonephritis. Gram-positive cocci in clusters were isolated from two sets of her blood culture. These cocci were later identified as Staphylococcus saprophyticus.

Prosthetic Double Valve Endocarditis Caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae Due to Overwhelming Post-Splenectomy Infection (OPSI) in a Pre-Vaccine Licensure Era: A Case Report.

Overwhelming post-splenectomy infection (OPSI) is a severe and potentially life-threatening condition that can occur in patients undergoing splenectomy. We report a case of a patient who had a splenectomy approximately 30 years ago during prosthetic valve insertion for infective endocarditis (IE). The patient later developed prosthetic valve endocarditis caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae associated with OPSI.

The eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase inhibitor, A484954, induces hypoglycaemic and hypotensive effects.

Background And Purpose: Eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase (eEF2K) belongs to the Ca/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase family. We previously revealed that A484954, a selective eEF2K inhibitor, caused hypotensive and diuretic effects via the production of nitric oxide (NO) in spontaneously hypertensive rats. Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats are hypertensive because of obesity and type 2 diabetes.

Type IV collagen expression is regulated by Notch3-mediated Notch signaling during angiogenesis.

Angiogenesis, the process of new blood vessel formation, involves endothelial cell proliferation and migration, accompanied by the remodeling of the extracellular matrix (ECM). Type IV collagen, a major ECM component, plays a critical role in vascular basement membrane regeneration, influencing cell polarity, migration, and survival. This study examines the regulatory role of Notch signaling, mediated by Notch3, in type IV collagen expression using TIG-1 fibroblasts and a co-culture angiogenesis model with human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).

Effect of high-fat diet on IgA cells and BAFF/APRIL in small intestinal villous lamina propria of mice.

Obesity exacerbates susceptibility to infectious diseases. We investigated the effects of a high-fat diet (HFD) on intestinal immunity, particularly immunoglobulin (Ig)A-producing cells, B-cell activating factor (BAFF), and a proliferation-inducing ligand (APRIL) localization. Mice (4- to 20-weeks old) were fed HFD or standard chow diet, and their jejunum and ileum were fixed using the in vivo cryotechnique.

Effect of sagittal spinal alignment on knee pain in patients with severe knee osteoarthritis: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Sagittal spinal alignment is closely related to knee joint function, and sagittal malalignment can affect knee joint pain. This study investigated the association between knee joint pain intensity and sagittal spinal alignment in patients with knee osteoarthritis.

Methods: This retrospective study enrolled 187 patients with knee osteoarthritis who were scheduled for primary unilateral total knee arthroplasty (TKA) from December 2021 to March 2023.

Enhancing surgical skills through telesimulation: A multicenter randomized controlled trial on laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair.

Background: Telesimulation has been shown to be effective for teaching simple surgical techniques; however, its usefulness for teaching advanced skills remains unclear. The aim of this randomized controlled trial was to investigate the impact of a telesimulation program on training for laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair.

Methods: Novice trainees were randomly assigned to the intervention group or control group using a permuted block design.

Characteristics of neutrophil chemotaxis in bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus).

Cetaceans have adapted to aquatic life by evolving various anatomic and physiologic traits, but biological defense mechanisms specific to aquatic mammals that protect against pathogenic microorganisms in the aquatic environment have not been elucidated. In this study, we investigated the migration of polymorphonuclear leukocytes in bottlenose dolphins in response to various chemotactic factors and compared the migration response with that of terrestrial animals such as cows and humans to characterize biological defense mechanisms unique to cetaceans. Bottlenose dolphin neutrophils showed strong chemotactic activity toward zymosan-activated serum and recombinant human interleukin-8 but no chemotaxis toward N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine or leukotriene B at any concentration examined.

Clinical utility of comprehensive genomic profiling in non-small cell lung cancer: An analysis of a nation-wide database.

Background: Molecular testing is recommended to patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) because those who receive targeted therapy have better prognosis than patients who don't. However, recent studies have raised concerns that first-line companion diagnostic testing at diagnosis may have lower detection rates than previously reported. Therefore, we sought to determine the utility of comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) tests in NSCLC by analyzing a nation-wide database.

Association of the skin microbiome with the biomechanical scar properties in patients with burns.

Background And Objectives: Skin microbiome dysbiosis can cause skin barrier dysfunction and stimulate scar property change. Skin barrier disruption post-burn injury leads to an imbalance in skin microbe diversity and distribution. We aimed to examine the changes in the skin microbiome of re-epithelialized burn scars.

Monolithic U-shaped crystal design for TOF-DOI detectors: a flat top vs. a tapered top.

For brain-dedicated positron emission tomography (PET) scanners, depth-of-interaction (DOI) information is essential to achieve uniform spatial resolution across the field-of-view (FOV) by minimizing parallax error. Time-of-flight (TOF) information can enhance the image quality. In this study, we proposed a novel monolithic U-shaped crystal design that had a tapered geometry to achieve good coincidence timing resolution (CTR) and DOI resolution simultaneously.

Impact of Attached File Formats on the Performance of ChatGPT-4 on the Japanese National Nursing Examination: Evaluation Study.

This research letter discusses the impact of different file formats on ChatGPT-4's performance on the Japanese National Nursing Examination, highlighting the need for standardized reporting protocols to enhance the integration of artificial intelligence in nursing education and practice.

Cell-Based Therapies in GI Cancers: Current Landscape and Future Directions.

Cell-based therapies have become integral to the routine clinical management of hematologic malignancies. Tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy has demonstrated efficacy in immunogenic solid tumors, such as melanoma. However, in the GI field, evidence supporting the clinical success of cell-based therapies is still awaited.

Methyl Syringate Monoglucoside Is a Crucial Intermediate in Leptosperin Biosynthesis in (ma̅nuka).

Leptosperin (methyl syringate-4--β-d-gentiobioside) serves as a unique marker for ma̅nuka honey, derived from the ma̅nuka plant (). Despite its importance, the biosynthesis pathway of leptosperin remains unreported. This study investigates the molecular mechanism of leptosperin formation from its aglycone, methyl syringate (MSYR), in ma̅nuka plants.

Clinical Characteristics of Hospitalized Children With Coronavirus Disease 2019 After the Spread of the BA.5 Omicron Variants in Japan.

Background: The spread of the BA.5 Omicron variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has increased the number of hospitalized children. However, the impact of the spread of new omicron subvariants in children remains poorly described.

Identification of leakage sites in central serous chorioretinopathy using optical coherence tomography and the assessment of the characteristics of the biomarkers.

Purpose: To identify optical coherence tomography (OCT)-based imaging biomarkers that can localize focal leakage points without fluorescein angiography in central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC).

Methods: This retrospective case-control study analyzed 119 consecutive patients (123 eyes) with CSC between April 2018 and February 2024, comprising 66 eyes with focal-leakage type and 57 eyes with diffuse-leakage type. We assessed leakage sites using OCT, and the proportions of OCT findings were compared between focal- and diffuse-leakage types.

Proposed Optical Manipulation of Nanoparticles to Access and Select Emission Lines.

Optical manipulation of nanomaterials using light resonant with material excitations holds promise for enhancing optical forces and sorting particles by unique quantum properties. Conventional resonant optical sorting mainly relies on absorption and scattering forces, making it difficult to sort nanomaterials by specific emission lines. Furthermore, emission typically induces negligible force unless the material is highly anisotropic, limiting selective manipulation via emission characteristics.

Impact of Ligand Structure on Biological Activity and Photophysical Properties of NHC-Protected Au Nanoclusters.

N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-protected gold nanoclusters display high stability and high photoluminescence, making them well-suited for fluorescence imaging and photodynamic therapeutic applications. We report herein the synthesis of two bisNHC-protected Au nanoclusters with π-extended aromatic systems. Depending on the position of the π-extended aromatic system, changes to the structure of the ligand shell in the cluster are observed, with the ability to correlate increases in rigidity with increases in fluorescence quantum yield.

Complex and Non-sequential Current Signatures of a β-Hairpin Peptide Confined in a Nanopore.

Nanopore sensing is widely used for single-molecule detection, originally applied to nucleic acids and now extended to protein sensing. Our study focuses on the complex conformational changes of peptides in nanopores, which may have implications for peptide fingerprinting and protein identification. Specifically, we investigated the interaction of a β-hairpin peptide (SV28) within an α-hemolysin (αHL) nanopore.