[Diagnosis of effort angina pectoris at rest by first derivative electrocardiography].

Objectives: First derivative electrocardiography (FDECG) records the slope of the wave of the standard 12-lead electrocardiography (ECG) and enables quantification of ECG-T wave symmetry. This study investigated the usefulness of FDECG to diagnose effort angina pectoris in patients with chest pain.

Methods: All 62 patients who visited our hospital with exertional chest pain underwent FDECG at rest, and exercise electrocardiography or stress thallium scintigraphy.

Deteriorating ischemic stroke in 4 clinical categories classified by the Oxfordshire Community Stroke Project.

Background And Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency, possible predictive factors, and prognosis of deteriorating ischemic stroke in 4 clinical categories according to the classification of the Oxfordshire Community Stroke Project (OCSP).

Methods: A total of 350 patients with first-ever ischemic stroke who presented within 24 hours of onset were enrolled. Based on the OCSP criteria, cerebral infarctions were divided into the following 4 clinical categories: total anterior circulation infarcts (TACI), partial anterior circulation infarcts (PACI), lacunar infarcts (LACI), and posterior circulation infarcts (POCI).

Classifying the empathic understanding of the nurse psychotherapist.

The purpose of this article is to identify types of verbal communication approaches to empathic understanding, and to consider the way of psychological support for cancer patients based on those types. These types were derived from the nurse psychotherapy process used with 46 Japanese cancer patients involved in the author's practice as a nurse psychotherapist. The psychotherapy process was interpreted by the phenomenologic approach.

Monoparesis of the right hand following a localised infarct in the left "precentral knob".

A patient with acute weakness of the righ arm showed a focal lesion on MRI in the left 'precentral knob', not visible on CT.

Correlation between symptomatic, radiological and etiological diagnosis in acute ischemic stroke.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to correlate with the symptomatic, radiological and etiological diagnosis in acute ischemic stroke.

Subjects And Methods: Two hundred and fifty patients with first-ever ischemic stroke within 24 h of onset were prospectively studied with 3-step diagnoses: 1) symptomatic diagnosis based on the Oxfordshire Community Stroke Project criteria (OCSP), 2) radiological diagnosis (CT or MRI) and 3) etiological diagnosis based on the Lausanne Stroke Registry criteria.

Results: Most of the patients with symptoms of total anterior circulation infarcts (TACI), partial anterior circulation infarcts (PACI) and posterior circulation infarcts (POCI) had corresponding lesions on CT or MRI, while only 68% of lacunar infarcts (LACI) patients had small subcortical infarction (SSI).

Pontine infarction due to basilar artery stenosis presenting as pathological laughter.

A 69-year-old woman presented right hemiparesis accompanied by pathological laughter ("fou rire prodromique"). The right hemiparesis progressed over several days and MRI revealed a left pontine infarct caused by basilar artery stenosis which was demonstrated by MRA.

[Accuracy of three-step diagnosis in discriminating subtypes of acute ischemic stroke].

The aim of this study is to evaluate the accuracy of three-step diagnosis in discriminating subtypes of acute ischemic stroke. A total of 120 consecutive patients with first-ever ischemic stroke, admitted to one general hospital, were prospectively studied. In the first step (within 24 hours of clinical onset), the first diagnosis was made according to clinical symptoms and signs, and patients were subdivided into four groups according to the classification of Oxfordshire Community Stroke Project: lacunar infarcts (LACI), total anterior circulation infarcts (TACI), partial anterior circulation infarcts (PACI), and posterior circulation infarcts (POCI).