Video analysis of gross body movements during sleep

Abstract Gross body movements (GM) during sleep, classified into four GM types by the involved parts of body, were evaluated using two-dimensional video analysis in five normal children aged 4–12 years. The rate of occurrence of all GM types showed apparent sleep stage dependency. Among four GM types, GM-1 (GM with axial rotation) was the most frequent. Averaged duration of GM-1 was the longest. A total of 77.2% of GM-1 started with the contraction of chin muscle and 35% of total sleep changes (tSC) were related to GM. A total of 5.6% of tSC following GM shifted to the deeper stage. Further evaluation is necessary in order to understand the physiological mechanism of GM.     

Tourette syndrome in Japan: A nationwide questionnaire survey of psychiatrists and pediatricians

In order to shed light on the clinical picture of patients with Tourette syndrome (TS) treated at medical institutions in Japan, a nationwide survey covering both pediatric patients and psychiatric patients was conducted. We mailed 316 questionnaires on experience in treating TS cases and the patients' present conditions etc. to specialists such as psychiatrists and pediatricians. A total of 164 responded. The survey found 154 TS patients being treated at the time of survey, 45 (29.2%) had obsessive–compulsive symptoms (OCS), and 10 (6.5%) had family histories of TS. It was suggested that TS is often associated with OCS and that familial cases of TS are slightly less common in Japan than they are in the USA. Of the 116 respondents who described their experiences, 85 (73.2%) said that they had treated one or more patients displaying the symptoms of frequent coprolalia, and 42 (36.2%) said that they had treated one or more patients suffering from developmental disorders. Based on these findings, we speculated that the rate of coprolalia in Japan is a little higher than the previously reported 4% and that TS is often associated with developmental disorders.     

A Cause of Sudden Death: Rupture of Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm

Sudden death occurred during antihypertcnsive therapy of a Stanford type A dissecting aortic aneurysw. Hemodynamic and electrocardiograpbic events were recorded including deterioration of ventricular fibrillation 4 minutes after rupture.     

Real-world Experience of Carotid Artery Stenting in Japan: Analysis of 7,134 Cases from JR-NET1 and 2 Nationwide Retrospective Multi-center Registries

The present study aimed to demonstrate the “real-world” experiences of carotid artery stenting (CAS) in Japan using Japanese Registry of Neuroendovascular Therapy (JR-NET) 1 and 2, retrospective nationwide multi-center surveillances. JR-NET1 and 2 registries are retrospective surveillances conducted between January 2005 and December 2007 and January 2008 and December 2009, respectively, in Japan regarding neuroendovascular therapy. A total of 7,134 procedures (1,943 for JR-NET1 and 5,191 for JR-NET2) were included in this study and retrieved data were analyzed retrospectively. Treatment results of two surveillance periods were similar. In JR-NET2 registry, total of 5,191 lesions were treated by CAS and 5,008 of 5,191 procedures (96.5%) were performed by the board-certified surgeons of Japanese Society of Neuroendovascular Therapy. The rate of technical success was extremely high (99.99%), and the rate of clinically significant complication was low (3.2%). These results were comparable to a previous large study in Japan. Multivariate logistic analysis revealed that age [odds ratio (OR), 1.04 per year; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.02–1.07; p = 0.0004), symptomatic lesion (OR, 1.87; 95% CI; p = 0.0004), and the use of closed-cell type stent (OR, 0.58; 95% CT, 0.32–1.00; p = 0.05) were independently associated with clinically significant complications. It was revealed that good clinical results were achieved in patients who underwent CAS in Japan. It is expected that the evolution of devices and increasing experiences of surgeons would lead to further improvement of the clinical results, and further investigation would be required to clarify the optimal treatment strategy and therapeutic efficacy of CAS, especially in symptomatic lesions.     

Fatty acid compositions of colostrum,cord blood,maternal blood and major infant formulas in Japan

Lipid profiles in colostrum, cord blood, maternal blood and major infant formulas in Japan were analyzed. In the first part of the study, colostrum obtained from 36 normal delivery women and six kinds of infant formulas provided by three major milk companies were analyzed for their fatty acid composition using capillary gas-lipid chromatography. Although enriched with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), the percent composition of DHA in the six infant formulas (0.15–0.21%) was significantly lower than that in the colostrum (1.1 ± 0.54). Arachidonic acid (AA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) were present in the colostrum but not detectable in the infant formulas. It is recommended that although the exact amount of specific fatty acids needed in the infant diet was not completely known, to be as close as possible to natural breast milk, the level of DHA, EPA and AA should be raised in the infant formulas. In the second part of the study, 19 pairs of maternal and cord blood were analyzed for their lipid profile. All samples were from normal vaginal delivery. The measurement of cholesterol, triglycerides, phospholipids and free fatty acids was performed with commercially available enzymatic methods on an automated discrete random access analyzer. Total fatty acid was determined as described in the first part of the study. The results were analyzed with Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. No correlation could be found between maternal and fetal concentrations of cholesterol, triglycerides, phospholipids or total fatty acids. Correlation could be found in non-esterified fatty acids, in palmitic acids, and oleic acid levels. It was concluded that the lipid transport and metabolism in the fetal-placenta unit is complex and further delicate investigation is required.