Impact of the left ventricular mass index on the outcomes of severe aortic stenosis.

Objective: To elucidate the factors associated with high left ventricular mass index (LVMI) and to test the hypothesis that high LVMI is associated with worse outcome in severe aortic stenosis (AS).

Methods: We analysed 3282 patients with LVMI data in a retrospective multicentre registry enrolling consecutive patients with severe AS in Japan. The management strategy, conservative or initial aortic valve replacement (AVR), was decided by the attending physician.

Early diagnosis of pancreatic necrosis based on perfusion CT to predict the severity of acute pancreatitis.

Background: Perfusion CT can diagnose pancreatic necrosis in early stage of severe acute pancreatitis, accurately. However, no study to date has examined whether early diagnosis of pancreatic necrosis is useful in predicting persistent organ failure (POF).

Methods: We performed a multi-center prospective observational cohort study to investigate whether perfusion CT can predict the development of POF in the early stage of AP, based on early diagnosis of the development of pancreatic necrosis (PN).

Dermatomyositis Associated with Lung Neuroendocrine Carcinoma.

Dermatomyositis is associated with various types of malignancy. However, the association of dermatomyositis with lung neuroendocrine carcinoma is rare. We herein report a case of dermatomyositis with lung neuroendocrine carcinoma.

Clinical manifestations of nonmotor symptoms in 1021 Japanese Parkinson's disease patients from 35 medical centers.

Introduction: We aimed to investigate the prevalence and severity of nonmotor symptoms (NMSs) and to identify factors affecting NMSs and the health-related quality of life of Japanese patients with Parkinson's disease (PD).

Methods: A total of 1021 patients with PD who had one or more NMS and showed wearing-off under anti-parkinsonian treatment were enrolled from 35 medical centers in Japan for this observational study. The primary measurements were the Movement Disorder Society unified Parkinson's disease rating scale (MDS-UPDRS) part I and the Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-8).

Outcomes and Radiographic Findings of Isolated Spontaneous Superior Mesenteric Artery Dissection.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the features, treatments, and prognosis of patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic isolated SMA dissection.

Methods: Data from 35 consecutive patients in whom isolated SMA dissection was diagnosed on computed tomography angiography (CTA) between 2004 and 2015 at two general hospitals in Japan, were collected retrospectively. Nineteen symptomatic patients were compared, and 16 asymptomatic patients with incidentally revealed SMA dissection were also compared.

Different clinical outcomes in patients with asymptomatic severe aortic stenosis according to the stage classification: Does the aortic valve area matter?

Background: The ACC/AHA guidelines introduced a new classification of severe aortic stenosis (AS) mainly based on maximum jet velocity (Vmax) and mean pressure gradient (mPG), but not on aortic valve area (AVA). However, prognostic value of this new classification has not yet been fully evaluated.

Methods And Results: We studied 1512 patients with asymptomatic severe AS enrolled in the CURRENT AS registry in whom surgery was not initially planned.

Secreted Phospholipase A2 Type IIA (sPLA2-IIA) Activates Integrins in an Allosteric Manner.

Secreted phospholipase A2 type IIA (sPLA2-IIA) is a well-established pro-inflammatory protein and has been a major target for drug discovery. However, the mechanism of its signaling action has not been fully understood. We previously found that sPLA2-IIA binds to integrins αvβ3 and α4β1 in human and that this interaction plays a role in sPLA2-IIA's signaling action.

Bilateral Vertebral Artery Aneurysms at the Atlantoaxial Joint Level Causing Recurrent Stroke.

Vertebral arteries (VAs) are vulnerable to mechanical stress between the atlas and axis, and subsequent VA dissection can cause posterior circulation infarction. We herein present a rare but informative case of bilateral VA aneurysms that caused recurrent stroke. The localization of the aneurysms and dynamic angiography with neck movement suggested a pathogenesis related to chronic mechanical injury of the VAs, though no skeletal abnormality was detected.

A case of neuroendocrine carcinoma in the hepatic hilar lymph nodes concomitant with an adenocarcinoma of the gallbladder.

Background: Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are rare especially in the gallbladder. They have not been elucidated in the pathogenesis, clinicopathological characteristics, and treatment options.

Case Presentation: We present a 76-year-old woman with a gallbladder tumor and hepatic hilar lymph node swelling.

Vaccine-strain herpes zoster found in the trigeminal nerve area in a healthy child: A case report.

A previously healthy 2-year-old girl, vaccinated for varicella at 17 months, was admitted because of left-sided facial herpes zoster caused by vaccine-strain varicella-zoster virus (VZV). She recovered fully with no complication after intravenous treatment using acyclovir. Earlier reports have described that herpes zoster (HZ) rashes caused by vaccine-strain VZV tend to occur on the dermis corresponding to the skin area where the varicella vaccine was received.

Safety and usefulness of needle-guided resection of levator muscles in laparoscopic abdominoperineal resection for low rectal cancer.

Introduction: During laparoscopic abdominoperineal resection (APR) for low rectal cancer, it is difficult to resect the levator muscles and remove a cylindrical specimen without venturing close to the rectal wall to ensure negative circumferential resection margins (CRM). To solve this problem, we developed a needle-guided, laparoscopic, abdominoperineal resection (LAPR) technique.

Aim: To present the safety and superiority of our technique, "needle-guided LAPR".

A rare subset of skin-tropic regulatory T cells expressing Il10/Gzmb inhibits the cutaneous immune response.

Foxp3 regulatory T cells (Tregs) migrating from the skin to the draining lymph node (dLN) have a strong immunosuppressive effect on the cutaneous immune response. However, the subpopulations responsible for their inhibitory function remain unclear. We investigated single-cell gene expression heterogeneity in Tregs from the dLN of inflamed skin in a contact hypersensitivity model.

Short versus prolonged dual antiplatelet therapy duration after bare-metal stent implantation: 2-month landmark analysis from the CREDO-Kyoto registry cohort-2.

One-month duration of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) has widely been adopted after bare-metal stent (BMS) implantation in the real clinical practice. However, it has not been adequately addressed yet whether DAPT for only 1-month could provide sufficient protection from ischemic events beyond 1-month after BMS implantation. We assessed the effects of short DAPT relative to prolonged DAPT on clinical outcomes with the landmark analysis at 2 month after BMS implantation.

Gel-Trapped Lymphorganogenic Chemokines Trigger Artificial Tertiary Lymphoid Organs and Mount Adaptive Immune Responses In Vivo.

We previously generated artificial lymph node-like tertiary lymphoid organs (artTLOs) in mice using lymphotoxin α-expressing stromal cells. Here, we show the construction of transplantable and functional artTLOs by applying soluble factors trapped in slow-releasing gels in the absence of lymphoid tissue organizer stromal cells. The resultant artTLOs were easily removable, transplantable, and were capable of attracting memory B and T cells.

Co-existence and seasonal variation in rhinitis and asthma symptoms in patients with asthma.

Background: Asthma and rhinitis are common diseases that often occur concomitantly. However, in patients with asthma, the concurrent assessment of seasonal variation in rhinitis and asthma symptoms has not been comprehensively addressed. We prospectively evaluated seasonal changes in rhinitis and asthma symptoms over one year.

A clinical evaluation of renal amyloidosis in the Japan renal biopsy registry: a cross-sectional study.

Background And Aim: The available clinical data are limited in a rare glomerular disease, renal amyloidosis. We aimed to clarify the clinical features of renal amyloidosis from database of the Japan Renal Biopsy Registry (J-RBR).

Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study with database of the J-RBR of the Japanese Society of Nephrology.

Clinical factors that affect the outcomes after anatomical versus non-anatomical resection for hepatocellular carcinoma.

Purpose: For hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the superiority of anatomical resection (AR) over non-anatomical resection (NR) is still controversial. In this study, we assessed the potential benefits of AR for HCC.

Methods: We enrolled 173 consecutive patients with HCC who underwent hepatectomy in our hospital from August 2003 to May 2013 and compared the outcomes for the AR group (n = 125) with those for the NR group (n = 48).