Endoscopic mucosal ischemic index for predicting anastomotic complications after esophagectomy: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Postoperative complications related to gastric conduit reconstruction are still common issues after McKeown esophagectomy. A novel endoscopic mucosal ischemic index is desired to predict anastomotic complications after McKeown esophagectomy.

Aims And Methods: The purpose of this study was to prospectively evaluate the safety and efficacy of endoscopic examinations of the anastomotic region in the acute period after esophagectomy.

Clinical Outcomes of Definitive Chemoradiotherapy for Cervical Esophageal Cancer.

Background/aim: To investigate the clinical outcomes of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) in patients with cervical esophageal carcinoma and analyze the prognostic factors.

Patients And Methods: Thirty-nine patients with cervical esophageal carcinoma were retrospectively identified among consecutive patients who received CCRT between November 2009 and September 2019 at our institution. The patients were treated by intensity-modulated radiation therapy (N=13) or three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (N=26).

Impact of S-1 adjuvant chemotherapy longer than 6 months on survival in patients with resected pancreatic cancer: a nationwide survey by the Japan Pancreas Society based on real-world data.

Background: Based on the Japan Adjuvant Study Group of Pancreatic Cancer 01 study, the standard duration of adjuvant chemotherapy with S-1 (an oral 5-fluorouracil prodrug consisting of tegafur, gimeracil, and oteracil) in patients with resected pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) was considered to be 6 months, but the impact of increasing its duration on postoperative survival was unknown. Here, the authors investigated this question by reviewing real-world data from a large cohort of patients with PDAC.

Methods: In total, 3949 patients who underwent surgery for PDAC during the study period followed by S-1 adjuvant chemotherapy in board-certified institutions were included.

Inhibition of bone erosion, determined by high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT), in rheumatoid arthritis patients receiving a conventional synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (csDMARD) plus denosumab vs csDMARD therapy alone: an open-label, randomized, parallel-group study.

Background: This exploratory study compared the inhibition of bone erosion progression in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients treated with a conventional synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (csDMARD) plus denosumab versus csDMARD therapy alone and investigated the effects of denosumab on bone micro-architecture and other bone-related parameters using high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT).

Methods: In this open-label, randomized, parallel-group study, patients with RA undergoing treatment with a csDMARD were randomly assigned (1:1) to continue csDMARD therapy alone or to continue csDMARDs with denosumab (60-mg subcutaneous injection once every 6 months) for 12 months. The primary endpoint was the change from baseline in the depth of bone erosion, measured by HR-pQCT, in the second and third metacarpal heads at 6 months after starting treatment.

Preoperative inhalation therapy for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease undergoing lung surgery: a retrospective study.

Background: Research shows that even the short-term administration of inhaled drugs immediately before surgery can improve respiratory function in surgical candidates with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, the long-term efficacies of different types of long-acting inhaled agents when used during a short preoperative period remain unclear. Therefore, we evaluated the efficacies of short-term, preoperative long-acting muscarinic antagonists (LAMAs), inhaled corticosteroids with long-acting β2-agonists (ICSs/LABAs), and long-acting muscarinic antagonists with long-acting β2-agonists (LAMAs/LABAs) in patients with COPD after lung resection.

Perfusion abnormality in neuronal intranuclear inclusion disease with stroke-like episode: A case report.

Neuronal intranuclear inclusion disease (NIID) is a slowly progressive neurodegenerative disease. Some patients with NIID occasionally present with acute symptoms. However, its mechanism remains unclear.

Effect of intraoperative operating table rotation on lower limb perfusion index in patients in the lithotomy position.

We focused on "returning to the horizontal position," one of the measures for preventing well leg compartment syndrome implemented at our hospital, and aimed to clarify the effect of intraoperative positional changes by operating table rotation on blood perfusion in the lower extremities during lithotomy in patients under general anesthesia. This prospective observational study examined 64 patients scheduled to undergo general anesthesia in the lithotomy position from March 2021 to May 2022. The primary endpoint was the perfusion index (PI) of the lower limb before and after operating table rotation.

A Phase II Trial on Osimertinib as a First-Line Treatment for EGFR Mutation-Positive Advanced NSCLC in Elderly Patients: The SPIRAL-0 Study.

Background: Osimertinib is one of the standard first-line treatments for advanced non-small cell lung cancer in patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations, because it achieves significantly longer progression-free survival (PFS) than conventional first-line treatments (hazard ratio: 0.46). However, the efficacy and safety of osimertinib as a first-line treatment for patients aged ≥75 years remain unclear.

Efficacy of strain plasma (LC-Plasma) in easing symptoms in patients with mild COVID-19: protocol for an exploratory, multicentre, double-blinded, randomised controlled trial (PLATEAU study).

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major concern worldwide; however, easily accessible treatment options for patients with mild COVID-19 remain limited. Since the oral intake of strain plasma (LC-Plasma) enhances both the innate and acquired immune systems through the activation of plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs), we hypothesised that the oral intake of LC-Plasma could aid the relief or prevention of symptoms in patients with asymptomatic or mild COVID-19.

Methods And Analysis: This is an exploratory, multicentre, double-blinded, randomised, placebo-controlled trial.

A case of BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine-associated fulminant myocarditis in a very elderly woman.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination is reportedly safe and effective. The histologic features of post-COVID-19 vaccination myocarditis are unknown. We present a case of a 77-year-old Japanese woman diagnosed with eosinophilic myocarditis using endomyocardial biopsy, 7 days after the second dose of BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine.

Clinical features of non-infectious pulmonary complications after donor lymphocyte infusion in post-transplant patients: The Nagasaki Transplant Group Experience.

Donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI) is a therapeutic modality for relapsed hematological malignancies after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. We retrospectively analyzed non-infectious pulmonary complications (non-IPCs) following DLI therapy in 41 post-transplant patients with hematological malignancies, and found that 7 developed post-DLI non-IPCs. The 6-year cumulative incidence of non-IPCs was 18.

The high degree of similarity in histopathological and clinical characteristics between radiogenic and sporadic papillary thyroid microcarcinomas in young patients.

The potential overtreatment of patients with papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (MPTC) has been an important clinical problem in endocrine oncology over the past decade. At the same time, current clinical guidelines tend to consider prior radiation exposure as a contraindication to less extensive surgery, even for low-risk thyroid carcinomas, which primarily include microcarcinomas. This study aims to determine whether there are differences in the behavior of MPTC of two etiological forms (radiogenic and sporadic), including invasive properties, clinical data, and recurrence in patients aged up to 30 years.

Endovascular treatment of an aneurysm arising from the minor limb of an upper basilar artery fenestration: illustrative case.

Background: An aneurysm arising in an upper basilar artery (BA) fenestration is extremely rare. The authors reported a case involving successful endovascular treatment of an aneurysm arising from the minor limb of an upper BA fenestration.

Observations: A 65-year-old woman presented with an incidentally detected upper BA aneurysm arising from the minor limb of an upper BA fenestration.

Small for Gestational Age Affects Outcomes on Singletons and Inborn Births in Extremely Preterm Infants: A Japanese Cohort Study.

Objective: This study aimed to compare the short- and long-term outcomes of extremely preterm small for gestational age (SGA) infants and appropriate for gestational age (AGA) infants in Japan.

Study Design: We retrospectively assessed 434 SGA and 1,716 AGA infants born at 22 to 27 weeks of gestational age (GA) and examined their outcomes on singletons and inborn births between 2003 and 2012. Infants were followed-up for 3 years, and the clinical characteristics and outcomes were compared.

Prognosis of asymptomatic versus symptomatic metastatic breast cancer: a multicenter retrospective study.

In Japan, asymptomatic metastatic breast cancer (MBC) is often detected using tumor markers or imaging tests. We aimed to investigate differences in clinicopathological features, prognosis, and treatment between asymptomatic and symptomatic MBCs. Patients with MBC were retrospectively divided into asymptomatic and symptomatic groups to compare their prognosis by breast cancer subtype: luminal, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 positive, and triple negative.

Immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment in extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma: A case of pleural metastases.

Extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma (EMCS) is an undifferentiated mesenchymal malignancy; however, its immune microenvironment remains to be elucidated. The case of a 34-year-old woman who developed EMCS metastasizing to the pleura is presented here. The pleural EMCS showed hypervascularity, absent PD-L1 expression, and a lack of tumor mutational burden and pathogenic variants.

Asymmetric epileptic spasms after corpus callosotomy in children with West syndrome may be a good indicator for unilateral epileptic focus and subsequent resective surgery.

Objective: This retrospective study was designed to observe differences in ictal movements of epileptic spasm (ES) before and after corpus callosotomy (CC). We hypothesized that asymmetric expression of ES is more clarified after CC and would be a good indicator for the epileptic hemisphere.

Methods: We selected 16 patients with intractable ES in West syndrome who were seizure-free after CC and subsequent resection or disconnective surgery of the unilateral hemisphere.