Two-Year Follow-Up of Vascular Events in Peripheral Arterial Disease Treated With Antiplatelet Agents: A Prospective Observational Multicenter Cohort Study (SEASON).

The present analysis was intended to evaluate the real-world management of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in Asia, and to explore cardiovascular events in patients with PAD undergoing antiplatelet therapy over 2 years of follow-up. The Surveillance of cardiovascular Events in Antiplatelet-treated arteriosclerosis Obliterans patients in JapaN (SEASON) registry is a prospective observational multicenter study of cardiovascular events in antiplatelet-treated patients with PAD in Japan. The SEASON registry included 11,375 patients who were scheduled to receive treatment for PAD.

Intake of omega-3 fatty acids contributes to bone mineral density at the hip in a younger Japanese female population.

Unlabelled: This study investigated the relationships between intakes of polyunsaturated fatty acids, omega-3 fatty acids, and omega-6 fatty acids and bone mineral density in Japanese women aged 19 to 25 years. Intakes of omega-3 fatty acids (n-3) were positively associated with peak bone mass at the hip.

Introduction: Lifestyle factors such as physical activity and nutrition intake are known to optimize the peak bone mass (PBM).

A Case Report: Gastric Mixed Neuroendocrine-Nonneuroendocrine Neoplasm with Aggressive Neuroendocrine Component.

Mixed neuroendocrine-nonneuroendocrine neoplasm (MiNEN) is defined as mixed epithelial neoplasms composed of both neuroendocrine and nonneuroendocrine components with variable proportions for each component. Neuroendocrine component can show morphological features including well- or poorly differentiated neuroendocrine neoplasms and nonneuroendocrine component can present different tumor types depending on the site of origin. Recently, studies of tumors have shown that MiNENs are not as rare as our traditional belief, due to the wide application for immunohistochemistry.

Differences in Characteristics and Outcomes Between Asian and Non-Asian Patients in the TIAregistry.org.

Background And Purpose: This study provides the contemporary causes and prognosis of transient ischemic attack (TIA) and minor stroke in Asians and the direct comparisons with non-Asians.

Methods: The TIAregistry.org enrolled 4789 patients (1149 Asians and 3640 non-Asians) with a TIA or minor ischemic stroke within 7 days of onset.

Acute presentation of autoimmune hepatitis: a multicentre study with detailed histological evaluation in a large cohort of patients.

Aims: Although liver biopsy is crucial to diagnose and guide treatment decisions, a detailed histological analysis of autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) with clinically acute presentations has not yet been performed. This study aimed to characterise the histological features and explore potential histological hallmarks to diagnose the acute presentation of AIH.

Methods: We systematically evaluated liver specimens of 87 adult patients with acute presentation of AIH retrospectively enrolled from Japanese multicentre facilities.

Reduction in High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein Levels in Patients with Ischemic Stroke by Statin Treatment: Hs-CRP Sub-Study in J-STARS.

Aims: The pleiotropic effects of statins on recurrent stroke remain unclear. We investigated the effects of pravastatin on high-sensitivity C-reactive proteins (Hs-CRP) in ischemic stroke, and explored the impact of Hs-CRP on recurrent stroke and vascular events.

Methods: This randomized open-label trial was ancillary to the J-STARS trial.

Symptomatic Patients Remain at Substantial Risk of Arterial Disease Complications Before and After Endarterectomy or Stenting.

Background And Purpose: After carotid endarterectomy (CEA) or carotid artery stenting (CAS) in patients with transient ischemic attack or minor ischemic stroke, recurrent stroke risk falls to a low rate on modern medical treatment.

Methods: We used data from 4583 patients with recent transient ischemic attack or minor stroke enrolled in the TIAregistry.org to perform a nested case-control analysis to evaluate pre- and post-CEA/CAS risk.

Brain Natriuretic Peptide Is a Powerful Predictor of Outcome in Stroke Patients with Atrial Fibrillation .

Background: Since stroke patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) have poor outcomes in general, the prediction of outcomes following discharge is of utmost concern for these patients. We previously reported that brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels were significantly higher in NVAF patients with larger infarcts, higher modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score, and higher CHADS2 score. In the present study, we evaluated an array of variables, including BNP, in order to determine significant predictors for functional outcome in patients with NVAF after acute ischemic stroke (AIS).

miR-425 regulates inflammatory cytokine production in CD4 T cells via N-Ras upregulation in primary biliary cholangitis.

Background & Aims: Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) is an autoimmune liver disease of unknown pathogenesis. Consequently, therapeutic targets for PBC have yet to be identified. CD4 T cells play a pivotal role in immunological dysfunction observed in PBC, and therefore, microRNA (miRNA) and mRNA expression were analysed in CD4 T cells, to investigate PBC pathogenesis and identify novel therapeutic targets.

Significance of Cholinergic and Peptidergic Nerves in Stress-Induced Ulcer and MALT Lymphoma Formation.

Unlabelled: Backgound: The role of enteric nerves has previously been demonstrated in the formation of several gastric diseases. In the present review, the significance of the cholinergic nerves in stress-induced ulcer formation as well as the importance of substance P in the formation of gastric MALT lymphoma is discussed.

Methods: The stress-induced ulcer was induced by the plaster bandage methods in rats.

Ten-year standardization of lipids and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in a randomized controlled trial to assess the effects of statins on secondary stroke prevention: Japan Statin Treatment Against Recurrent Stroke.

Background The Japan Statin Treatment Against Recurrent Stroke (J-STARS) is a clinical trial that administered pravastatin for secondary stroke prevention. Lipid concentrations are a well-established risk factor for cerebrovascular diseases. Elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) indicates a high risk of inflammatory reactions.

Outcomes of conservative management of spontaneous celiac artery dissection.

Objective: Spontaneous celiac artery (CA) dissection without associated aortic dissection is a rare condition. Although this condition has been diagnosed more frequently with the advent of improved diagnostic imaging modalities, its pathogenesis and treatment strategy remain to be established. The present study examined the clinical features and outcomes of conservative management of this disease.

The Japan Statin Treatment Against Recurrent Stroke (J-STARS) Echo Study: Rationale and Trial Protocol.

Objective: The preventive effect of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase inhibitors (statins) on progression of carotid intima-media complex thickness (IMT) has been shown exclusively in nonstroke Western patients. The Japan Statin Treatment Against Recurrent Stroke (J-STARS) Echo Study aims to determine the effect of pravastatin on carotid IMT in Japanese patients with hyperlipidemia who developed noncardioembolic ischemic stroke.

Design: This is a substudy of the J-STARS, a multicenter, randomized, open-label, blinded-end point, parallel-group trial to examine whether pravastatin reduces stroke recurrence in patients with noncardioembolic stroke.

Angiopoietin-like 4: A molecular link between insulin resistance and rheumatoid arthritis.

Recent evidence suggests that common factor(s) or molecule(s) might regulate lipid and glucose metabolism, inflammation, and bone and cartilage degeneration. These findings may be particularly relevant for cases of rheumatoid arthritis, in which chronic inflammation occurs in an autoimmune context and causes the degradation of articular joints as well as insulin resistance and cardiovascular complications. Candidates for this common regulatory system include signals mediated by peroxisome proliferator-activated regulator and its response factor, angiopoietin-like 4.

Recent nutritional trends of calcium and vitamin D in East Asia.

Calcium intake may play an important role on bone health. The recent national nutritional survey in Japan revealed the gradual decrease in calcium intake to around 480 mg/day. In addition, the patients with low level of vitamin D become too large in proportion.

Effect of the wide-spread use of endovenous laser ablation on the treatment of varicose veins in Japan: a large-scale, single institute study.

In Japan, stripping under general anesthesia, lumbar anesthesia and tumescent local anesthesia has been used in the treatment of primary varicose veins due to saphenous vein insufficiency. However endovenous laser ablation (EVLA) using a 980 nm diode laser has received National Health Insurance (NHI) coverage in 2011, while EVLA using a 1470 nm diode laser with a radial 2-ring fiber has received coverage in 2014. As a result, the use of EVLA has become widespread in Japan.

New simple image overlay system using a tablet PC for pinpoint identification of the appropriate site for anastomosis in peripheral arterial reconstruction.

Purpose: To evaluate the accuracy and utility of a new image overlay system using a tablet PC for patients undergoing peripheral arterial reconstruction.

Methods: Eleven limbs treated with distal bypass surgery were studied. Three-dimensional images obtained by processing a preoperative contrast-enhanced computed tomography scan were superimposed onto the back-camera images of a tablet PC.

Brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity is associated with 3-month functional prognosis after ischemic stroke.

Background And Aims: Brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) is a good measure of arterial stiffness and is associated with risk of future vascular events. The present study aimed to examine whether baPWV can also predict 3-month functional outcome after stroke.

Methods: This hospital-based study included 327 consecutive patients with acute ischemic stroke and in whom baPWV was measured during hospitalization.

Autoimmune liver diseases in the Asia-Pacific region: Proceedings of APASL symposium on AIH and PBC 2016.

During the 25th annual meeting of the Asia-Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL 2016) in Tokyo, we organized and moderated an inaugural satellite symposium on the autoimmune liver diseases, autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) and primary biliary cholangitis (PBC). Following the keynote lecture by John M. Vierling (USA), speakers from the Asia-Pacific region provided an up-to-date perspective on the epidemiology, clinical practice and research in AIH and PBC in the Asia-Pacific region.

Autoimmune hepatitis in Japan: trends in a nationwide survey.

Background: A nationwide survey of autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) patients was performed in Japan in 2015. The aims of this study were to elucidate the trends and characteristics of AIH in Japan, in addition to identifying differences in AIH between acute hepatitis and chronic hepatitis.

Methods: Questionnaires about patients with AIH diagnosed from 2009 to 2013 were sent to 437 hospitals or clinics with hepatology specialists.

Luseogliflozin, A Sodium Glucose Co-transporter 2 Inhibitor, Alleviates Hepatic Impairment in Japanese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes.

Luseogliflozin, a selective inhibitor of sodium glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2), was previously shown to improve the blood glucose and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels of patients with type 2 diabetes in a clinical setting. Although patients with type 2 diabetes often have hepatic impairment, few reports have been published concerning the influence of luseogliflozin on HbA1c and hepatic function in patients with type 2 diabetes accompanied by hepatic impairment. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the influence of luseogliflozin on HbA1c and hepatic function in patients with type 2 diabetes divided into 2 groups according to hepatic function parameters (a normal group and an elevated group).

Rivaroxaban for secondary stroke prevention in patients with embolic strokes of undetermined source: Design of the NAVIGATE ESUS randomized trial.

Background: Embolic strokes of undetermined source comprise up to 20% of ischemic strokes. The stroke recurrence rate is substantial with aspirin, widely used for secondary prevention. The New Approach riVaroxaban Inhibition of Factor Xa in a Global trial versus ASA to prevenT Embolism in Embolic Stroke of Undetermined Source international trial will compare the efficacy and safety of rivaroxaban, an oral factor Xa inhibitor, versus aspirin for secondary prevention in patients with recent embolic strokes of undetermined source.

Vonoprazan versus conventional proton pump inhibitor-based triple therapy as first-line treatment against Helicobacter pylori: A multicenter retrospective study in clinical practice.

Objective: Vonoprazan is a potassium-competitive acid blocker, a new type of acid-suppressing drug, and has recently become available for peptic ulcers, gastroesophageal reflux disease, and Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) eradication. Its efficacy for H.