Concomitant methotrexate and tacrolimus augment the clinical response to abatacept in patients with rheumatoid arthritis with a prior history of biological DMARD use.

This observational retrospective study examined whether abatacept efficacy could be augmented with concomitant methotrexate (MTX) or tacrolimus (TAC) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who experienced failure with prior biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and in whom favorable therapeutic efficacy is difficult to achieve. All patients with a prior biological DMARD history who were treated with abatacept for 52 weeks and registered in a Japanese multicentre registry were included. Clinical efficacy and safety of abatacept according to the concomitant drug used, i.

Minimally Invasive Endourological Techniques may Provide a Novel Method for Relieving Urinary Obstruction due to Ureterosciatic Herniation.

Ureterosciatic herniation, the protrusion of the hernia sac through the sciatic foramen, is an extremely rare cause of ureteral obstruction. We describe a case revealed by severe left back pain in a 72-year-old female. She was referred to our hospital for urological assessment of left hydronephrosis observed by ultrasonography.

Longterm efficacy and safety of abatacept in patients with rheumatoid arthritis treated in routine clinical practice: effect of concomitant methotrexate after 24 weeks.

Objective: Our study aimed to evaluate the longterm efficacy and safety of abatacept (ABA), and to explore factors that increase its longterm efficacy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treated in routine clinical practice.

Methods: There were 231 participants with RA treated with ABA who were prospectively registered in a Japanese multicenter registry. They were followed up for at least 52 weeks.

Prophylactic procedure for inguinal hernia after radical retropubic prostatectomy.

Purpose: The incidence of inguinal hernias (IH) after radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP) has been reported to range from 10 to 50 %, but no prophylaxis for IH has yet been established. We proposed a prophylaxis for IH after RRP.

Methods: A total of 180 patients underwent RRP at our hospital between 2000 and 2011.

Use of a 12-week observational period for predicting low disease activity at 52 weeks in RA patients treated with abatacept: a retrospective observational study based on data from a Japanese multicentre registry study.

Objective: Only a few studies have assessed predictive factors for the long-term efficacy of abatacept. This study aimed to provide clinical evidence of an adequate observational period for predicting low disease activity (LDA) achievement at 52 weeks in RA patients treated with abatacept.

Methods: Participants were all patients registered in a Japanese multicentre registry who were treated with abatacept and had at least 52 weeks of follow-up (n = 254).

Ramelteon for the treatment of delirium in elderly patients: a consecutive case series study.

Objective: Melatonin is effective in the prevention and treatment of delirium. Ramelteon has few adverse effects and higher affinity for MT1 and MT2 receptors than melatonin. The aim of the present study was to determine the efficacy of ramelteon in elderly patients with delirium caused by different primary diseases/conditions.

[Comparison of B-mode ultrasonography and computed tomography in the evaluation of maxillary sinusitis in pediatric patients].

The use of ultrasonography in the diagnosis of maxillary sinusitis in pediatric patients has been reported recently because of the improvement of the accuracy of ultrasound technology. We thus compared B-mode ultrasonography and computed tomography in the diagnosis of maxillary sinusitis in pediatric patients. Thirty-six maxillary sinuses in 18 patients (10 females, 8 males, ages ranging from 7-15 years with an average age of 10.

Usefulness of J-CAPRA score for high-risk prostate cancer patients treated with carbon ion radiotherapy plus androgen deprivation therapy.

Background: A novel risk assessment method, Japan Cancer of the Prostate Risk Assessment, has been developed based on database of patients receiving primary androgen deprivation therapy. To investigate the usefulness of Japan Cancer of the Prostate Risk Assessment for non-metastatic, high-risk prostate cancer patients treated with carbon ion radiotherapy plus androgen deprivation therapy.

Methods: Patients with non-metastatic, high-risk prostate cancer (T3, initial prostate specific antigen level ≥20 ng/ml, and/or Gleason score ≥8) were included.

Elbow Injuries in Youth Baseball Players Without Prior Elbow Pain: A 1-Year Prospective Study.

Background: Many risk factors for throwing injuries have been proposed. However, little is known about the risk factors for elbow injuries, particularly on physeal injuries in youth baseball players without prior elbow pain.

Purpose: To investigate the risk factors for elbow injuries with a focus on physeal injuries that could predispose youth baseball players without elbow pain to elbow injuries.

Catastrophic head and neck injuries in judo players in Japan from 2003 to 2010.

Background: Few studies have documented catastrophic head and neck injuries in judo, but these injuries deserve greater attention.

Purpose: To determine the features of catastrophic head and neck injuries in judo.

Study Design: Descriptive epidemiological study.

[Generalized anxiety disorder, now and the future: a perspective to the DSM-5].

Generalized, persistent, and free-floating anxiety was first described by Freud in 1894. The diagnostic term generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) was not in classification systems until the publication of the diagnostic and statistical manual for mental disorders, third edition (DSM-III) in 1980. Initially considered as a residual category to be used when no other diagnosis could be made, it is not accepted that GAD represents a distinct diagnostic category yet.

Birt-Hogg-Dubé syndrome and familial adenomatous polyposis: an association or a coincidence?

An association between Birt-Hogg-Dubé syndrome (BHDS) and colon cancer remains conjectural, but herein we describe a case who may illustrate a significant link between them. The 60-year-old woman was diagnosed at 28 years of age with colon carcinoma and familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP). She also had repeated pneumothoraces, and was diagnosed with BHDS following the finding of pneumothorax in her son.

Olanzapine for the relief of nausea in patients with advanced cancer and incomplete bowel obstruction.

Bowel obstruction is one of the most common complications in patients with advanced cancer. Incomplete bowel obstruction is one of the leading causes of nausea and vomiting, which may result in a substantial impairment to quality of life. We explored the antiemetic activity of olanzapine against nausea and vomiting in cancer patients with incomplete bowel obstruction.

Continuous subcutaneous infusion of compound oxycodone for the relief of dyspnea in patients with terminally ill cancer: a retrospective study.

Pain and dyspnea are the most prevalent and distressing symptoms in patients with terminally ill cancer. Evidences have accumulated for the effects of morphine on dyspnea, whereas little is known about the effects of oxycodone on dyspnea. We investigated the effectiveness of oxycodone for dyspnea in patients with terminally ill cancer.

Continuous subcutaneous infusion of lidocaine for persistent hiccup in advanced cancer.

Persistent hiccup can cause anorexia, weight loss, disabling sleep deprivation, anxiety, and depression. Therefore, relief of persistent hiccup is important for advanced cancer patients and their family. Most reports on this condition are case series reports advocating the use of baclofen, haloperidol, gabapentin, and midazolam.

A review of tocilizumab treatment in 122 rheumatoid arthritis patients included in the Tsurumai Biologics Communication Registry (TBCR) Study.

Objectives: Biologics have transformed the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Clinical remission is now the goal. We sought to verify whether the administration of tocilizumab-a biologic-can help to achieve current treatment goals.

[How to use psychotropic medicine in women].

It's very important to know how to use psychotropic medicine, especially selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in pregnant women. Because between 14% and 23% of pregnant women will experience a depressive disorder while pregnant. In 2003, approximately 13% of women took an antidepressant at some point in pregnancy, a rate that has doubled since 1999.

[Pros and cons of active surveillance for low-risk prostate cancer].

Because of the recent increase of prostate specific antigen (PSA)-screening, potential risks of overdiagnosis and overtreatment are more easily pointed out for low-risk prostate cancer. Active surveillance is one of the therapeutic options for the management of patients with low-risk prostate cancer. Concerning the indication of active surveillance, candidates for it have been selected based on several clinical factors including clinical stage(T), PSA level, Gleason score, and the number of positive cores on prostatic biopsy, but the selection criteria have not yet been uniformly established.

[A case of clopidogrel-induced eosinophilic pneumonia].

An 83-year-old man had been prescribed clopidogrel for pontine infarction since 8 months previously, and had had a cough for the last 2 weeks of this period. Laboratory examinations on admission showed a marked increase in eosinophils and elevated serum immunoglobulin E levels. Chest radiography showed bilateral ground-glass opacities, mild reticulation, and interlobar pleural effusion in the minor fissure.

[Evaluation of utility index of quality of life (QOL) in prostate cancer patients: comparison of QOL utility index EuroQol-5D (EQ-5D) and visual analogue scale (VAS) with health-related QOL questionnaires SF-36 and EPIC].

Purpose: For the management of patients with localized prostate cancer, a number of therapeutic options are available. To compare the therapeutic modalities, it is important and necessary to evaluate economical aspects based on cost-effectiveness analysis. In addition, the survival time adjusted by quality of life (QOL), quality adjusted life year (QALY), is more reliable than the crude survival time.

[Problems in the home palliative care revealed from questionnaires at lecture workshops organized by the Tokyo Metropolitan Home Palliative Care Support Center].

Tokyo Kosei-Nenkin Hospital operates the Tokyo Metropolitan Home Palliative Care Support Center (TMHPCSC) commissioned from the Tokyo metropolitan government. TMHPCSC held one lecture workshop for healthcare professionals and one symposium for general citizens in fiscal year ended March 2008. Questionnaires were distributed to the attendants at the beginning of meetings and collected at the end.