Neurological Prognostic Value of Adjusted Ca Concentration in Adult Patients with Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest.

Many patients are transferred to hospital due to out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), and, unfortunately, most suffer from cerebral damage. Currently, it is difficult to predict the recovery of neurological function after return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) in the acute phase. Increased intracellular Ca induces cell death in the acute phase.

Is X-linked Recessive Ichthyosis a High Risk for Basal Cell Carcinoma?

We report a case of X-linked recessive ichthyosis with basal cell carcinoma. An 86-year-old man was referred to our department for evaluation of a 1-year history of an ulcer on his left leg. He had suffered from dry skin with scales on his entire body since childhood.

Improved cognitive apprenticeship clinical teaching after a faculty development program.

Background: While it is well known that the cognitive apprenticeship is an effective workplace-based teaching approach for clinical teachers, the effects of faculty development (FD) have not been analyzed from that perspective. The purpose of this study was to investigate self-assessment by clinical teachers of their educational perceptions and behaviors after a FD program using the cognitive apprenticeship model.

Methods: Board-certified pediatricians who participated in a 3-day FD program on practical clinical teaching were asked to complete questionnaires.

Risk stratification and clinical course of hepatitis B virus reactivation in rheumatoid arthritis patients with resolved infection: final report of a multicenter prospective observational study at Japanese Red Cross Hospital.

Background: The prophylaxis for hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation assumes that hepatic injury after reactivation is often rapidly progressive and can evoke fulminant hepatitis. The incidence and prognosis of reactivation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) may be different from those receiving organ transplantation and cancer chemotherapy. This study aimed to investigate the incidence, risk factors, and clinical course of HBV reactivation and develop a scoring system for risk stratification in RA patients with resolved infection.

Comparison of anterior chamber flare among different glaucoma surgeries.

Purpose: To compare postsurgical anterior chamber flare (ACF) among conventional (trabeculectomy, LEC) and novel (EX-PRESS Shunt, EXP) filtration surgeries and microhook ab interno trabeculotomy (μLOT), a novel minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS).

Subjects And Methods: This retrospective study included 125 primary open angle glaucoma eyes (89 consecutive subjects) treated with μLOT (n=38), LEC (n=12), or EXP (n=75). The intraocular pressure (IOP), numbers of antiglaucoma medication, and ACF at preoperatively and 2 weeks; 1, 3, and 6 months postoperatively were compared among the surgical groups using a mixed-effects regression model.

Durable clinical benefit of letrozole in leptomeningeal metastasis of breast cancer.

A case of a woman in her 60s with breast cancer, whose leptomeningeal metastasis (LM) of breast cancer improved remarkably with letrozole monotherapy, is reported. The patient complained of numbness of her left hand and hoarseness, followed by progressive asymmetric extremity weakness and a bladder and rectal disturbance. The patient had undergone surgery for left breast cancer 18 years earlier and was concerned about recurrence of breast cancer, but there were no typical findings with some imaging modalities.

Blood Oxygen, Sleep Disordered Breathing, and Respiratory Instability in Patients With Chronic Heart Failure - PROST Subanalysis.

Respiratory stability index (RSI), a semi-quantitative measure of respiratory instability, was found to reflect congestive and other clinical status of acutely decompensated heart failure in the PROST study. Given that the association between RSI and another important factors affecting respiration, such as peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO), and the influence of oxygen inhalation on this association were undetermined, and that the association between common sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) parameters and RSI was unknown, we performed a subanalysis using PROST data. Correlation analyses were performed to evaluate the relationships between RSI, SpO, and other SDB parameters (3% oxygen desaturation index [3%ODI], respiratory disturbance index [RDI]) using Spearman's rank correlation.

Prospective multicenter study of the esophageal triamcinolone acetonide-filling method in patients with subcircumferential esophageal endoscopic submucosal dissection.

Background And Aim: The esophageal triamcinolone acetonide (TA)-filling method is a novel local approach for stenosis prevention after extensive esophageal endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD). We evaluated this method after subcircumferential ESD.

Methods: We enrolled 20 patients with esophageal cancer requiring subcircumferential ESD in a prospective multicenter study.

A case series of endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation with 532-nm laser in Japanese patients with refractory glaucoma.

Purpose: To report an initial case series of Japanese patients with refractory glaucoma treated with endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation (ECP) using an ECP device that was equipped with a 532-nm neodymium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet (Nd:YAG) laser.

Methods: This observational case series included 10 consecutive glaucomatous eyes (7 with primary open-angle glaucoma; 3 with secondary glaucoma after cataract surgery) of 10 Japanese subjects (7 men, 3 women; mean age ± standard deviation, 65.7 ± 15.

Intermediate-term outcomes of aortic valve replacement with bioprosthetic or mechanical valves in patients on hemodialysis.

Objective: To investigate the influence of choice of prosthesis (bioprosthetic valves or mechanical valves) on intermediate-term outcomes in patients on hemodialysis undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR).

Methods: A multi-institutional retrospective cohort study was conducted in 18 Japanese centers. All adult patients on chronic hemodialysis who underwent AVR from 2008 and 2015 were included (n = 491).

Bleb wall recession technique to repair giant bleb formation after Ahmed Glaucoma Valve implantation: a case report.

Background: Giant bleb formation after glaucoma tube shunt surgery is a rare condition and consensus regarding its management has not been established.

Case Presentation: A 66-year-old Japanese man with primary open-angle glaucoma underwent implantation of an Ahmed glaucoma valve to reduce the intraocular pressure in his left eye. At 4 weeks postoperatively, he presented with a foreign body sensation in his left eye.

Relationship between Barrett's esophagus and colonic diseases: a role for colonoscopy in Barrett's surveillance.

Background: Given that risk factors for Barrett's carcinogenesis are predictive, appropriate management and surveillance of Barrett's esophagus (BE) may be provided. The presence of colorectal neoplasms (CRNs) is a possible predictor of the development of BE and the progression to esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC). We evaluated the relationship between BE or EAC and colonic diseases, including neoplasms and diverticulosis.

[Investigation of Computed Tomography Exposure Dose for Whole-body F-FDG PET/CT Examination in Chugoku-Shikoku Regions].

Purpose: We investigated the way of thinking about the CT dose setting, the exposure dose (CTDI, DLP) and the image quality (standard deviation of liver: SD) of whole-body PET/CT examinations in the Chugoku and Shikoku regions for the optimized CT dose setting.

Method: It was researched in the target 29 facilities which is equipped with F-FDG, PET/CT scanner in that regions. We examined how to determine the dose of complete physical PET/CT setting, the CT radiation dose (CTDI and DLP) and the image quality of CT fusion image that is the standard deviation of liver CT value in each facility.

Successful Treatment of Lung Adenocarcinoma with Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Compound Mutations Involving Exon 19 Deletion and Exon 20 Insertion by Afatinib.

A 70-year-old woman was referred to our hospital after a nodular shadow was noted on chest X-ray. Chest computed tomography showed a pulmonary mass in the right upper lobe, and brain magnetic resonance imaging revealed a right-sided frontal lobe tumor. A histological examination of a transbronchial lung biopsy specimen revealed adenocarcinoma with epidermal growth factor receptor mutations involving both exon 19 deletion and exon 20 insertion.

Development of a deep residual learning algorithm to screen for glaucoma from fundus photography.

The Purpose of the study was to develop a deep residual learning algorithm to screen for glaucoma from fundus photography and measure its diagnostic performance compared to Residents in Ophthalmology. A training dataset consisted of 1,364 color fundus photographs with glaucomatous indications and 1,768 color fundus photographs without glaucomatous features. A testing dataset consisted of 60 eyes of 60 glaucoma patients and 50 eyes of 50 normal subjects.

Real-world efficacy and safety of sofosbuvir + ribavirin for hepatitis C genotype 2: A nationwide multicenter study by the Japanese Red Cross Liver Study Group.

Aim: This study aimed to describe the real-world efficacy and safety of sofosbuvir (SOF) + ribavirin (RBV) for chronic hepatitis C, genotype 2.

Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of a nationwide, multicenter registry including 914 hepatitis C genotype 2 Japanese patients treated with SOF + RBV for 12 weeks. The rate of sustained virologic response at 12 weeks after treatment (SVR12), incidence of adverse events, and changes in serological parameters were analyzed.

Inter-institutional variations regarding Barrett's esophagus diagnosis.

Background: Barrett's esophagus (BE) is a known precursor for development of esophageal adenocarcinoma and surveillance of affected patients is necessary when cancer progression risk is considered to be high. However, the accuracy of BE diagnosis may not be homogenous among institutions with endoscopy units. We investigated inter-institutional variability by examining the accuracy of endoscopic diagnosis of BE at 4 different hospitals.