Screening for musculoskeletal problems in children using a questionnaire

Background

On April 1, 2016, the Ministerial ordinance was enforced, and musculoskeletal examination of the extremities was made mandatory. From 2008, the University of us started musculoskeletal direct examination. To expand the examination, from 2016, we started to use the marksheet-type questionnaire. This study aimed to report the results of a musculoskeletal examination and investigate the association between musculoskeletal examination and age/gender and reports the reliability of the collected questionnaire data.

Clinical phase I study of T-2588

A clinical phase I study for T-2588 was carried out in 25 healthy male volunteers. Each volunteer received T-2588 in one of the following doses: 100 mg capsule or tablet as a single oral administration in fasting or non-fasting state, 200 or 400 mg capsule as a single oral administration in non-fasting state or 300 or 600 mg daily for 14 approximately 15 days as a repeated administration in non-fasting state. The results are summarized below. No subjective or objective adverse effects were noted after a single oral administration. But repeated dose of 300 mg daily for 15 days and 600 mg daily for 14 days brought about abdominal distension in 1 case and soft stool in 1 case, respectively. As an abnormal change in clinical laboratory findings, 1 case with slight increase in transaminase after a single administration and 3 cases with slight increases in transaminase after repeated doses were observed. Time to reach a maximum concentration of T-2525 in blood (Tmax) was longer in subjects at non-fasting states than subjects in fasting states. Maximum blood concentration was lower in the latter than in the former. Urinary excretion rate in 8 hours after an oral administration was 19 approximately 28% and it was higher in non-fasting subject than in fasting subject. No accumulation of T-2588 was noted after repeated doses.     

A case report of inflammatory breast cancer effectively treated with cis-platinum

A 50-year-old woman with bilateral inflammatory breast cancer (T4, N1b, M1, Stage IV) underwent right extended radical mastectomy and left modified radical mastectomy following pre-operative administration of carcinostatics (ADM, 5-FU) and irradiation. However, tumor recurrence was observed at the skin and right pleural cavity after the operation. Adriamycin-containing combination chemotherapy and radiation therapy were performed, but no significant response was obtained. CDDP was then administered intravenously at a daily dose of 62.5 mg/m2 at intervals of 60 days. The pleural effusion disappeared and the extent of skin metastasis was reduced, resulting in partial response which lasted for 90 days. The serum CEA level decreased from 13.1 ng/ml to 2.3 ng/ml. As the side effects of this therapy, slight nausea, vomiting and general fatigue were observed. This result suggested that CDDP is an effective drug for inflammatory breast cancer.     

Role of red blood cell deformation in toxicity of contrast media in cerebral angiography

The authors investigated the effect on the brain of red blood cells that had been modified by contrast media. Rat blood was mixed with an equivolume of contrast media, and up to 200 microL of the mixture was infused to the internal carotid artery of the rat. Evans blue was administered intravenously to assess the integrity of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Immediately after the death of the animal, or 2.5 hours after the infusion, the brain was removed for evaluation of the degree of BBB destruction and edema. Extensive destruction of the BBB, cerebral edema, and death of the animals were induced by infusion of blood mixed with an ionic contrast medium, such as diatrizoate and iothalamate, which deformed red blood cells. Microscopic observation showed atrophy and necrosis of nerve cells and decomposition of nerve fibers in the affected area of the brain. Cerebral damage was not observed in rats injected with blood mixed with a nonionic contrast medium such as iopamidol, iopromide, or metrizamide, which had less effect on red blood cells. Cerebral damage also was observed in the rats injected with blood mixed with a hyperosmotic solution of mannitol, as well as washed red blood cells mixed with an ionic contrast medium. This study's results indicate that hyperosmotic ionic contrast media affect red blood cells and cause disturbance in cerebral circulation.     

Levels and ages of selenium and metals in sedimentary cores of Ise Bay as determined by 210-Pb dating technique

Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology -     

Impact of unilateral interposition sural nerve graft on the recovery of sexual function after radical prostatectomy in Japanese men: A preliminary study

PURPOSE: To determine the effect of an interposition nerve graft on sexual function after radical prostatectomy. METHODS: This study includes 64 patients, without hormonal therapy, who underwent a radical prostatectomy and intraoperative electrophysiological confirmation of cavernous nerve preservation. Twelve patients underwent a unilateral interposition sural nerve graft (UNG) for the resected neurovascular bundle. Twenty-one and 31 patients underwent bilateral nerve-sparing (BNS) and unilateral nerve-sparing (UNS) surgery without a nerve graft, respectively. As the age of patients was significantly younger in the UNG group than in the other groups, age-matched analysis also was conducted. Sexual function, evaluated by a self-administered questionnaire using the University of California Los Angeles-Prostate Cancer Index, was compared statistically among the three groups. RESULTS: In the age-matched analysis, the postoperative sexual function (SXF) score of the UNG group showed an intermediate level of recovery between those of the BNS and UNS groups at 12 months and reached the same level as the score at 12 months of the BNS group at 18 months postoperatively. The difference in the SXF score between the UNG and UNS groups began to appear after 6 months postoperatively and increased steadily with time. However, the background factors, such as the baseline SXF score, the usage rate of phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors, and the rate of comorbidities were different between the UNG and UNS groups. CONCLUSIONS: The difference of the SXF score between the UNG and UNS groups increased with time after 6 months postoperatively. However, it might be difficult at present to attribute a better recovery of the SXF score to the nerve graft because of the difference in the background factors between the groups.     

Availability of 4'galactosyllactose (O-beta-D-galactopyranosyl-(1----4)-O-beta-D-galactopyranosyl-(1----4)- D-glucopyranose) in rat

O-beta-D-Galactopyranosyl-(1----4)-O-beta-D-galactopyranosyl-(1----4)-D- glucopyranose (designated as 4'GL) is produced from lactose by Cryptococcus laurentii. The influence of chronic ingestion of 4'GL on body weight gain, organ weight, serum lipids, and liver lipids was investigated in rats. The body weight gains of the 5% and 10% 4'GL-diet groups were higher than that of the control group. Food intake and fecal dry weight were significantly increased (p less than 0.05) by 4'GL feeding. The 4'GL diet produced a significant increase (p less than 0.01) in the wet weight and contents of both the cecum and the colon. However, no significant increase was observed in the weight of the stomach, small intestine, liver, or other organs. The effects of 4'GL on serum and liver lipid levels were not observed in this experiment. The digestion of 4'GL was measured in vitro using the artificial gastric juice, alpha-amylase of human saliva, alpha-amylase of hog pancreas, and mucosa of rat intestine. 4'GL was not hydrolyzed by these enzymes. Long-term ingestion of 4'GL did not cause any induction of 4'GL hydrolyzing enzyme activity in the rat small intestine.