Detection and prognosis of alimentary tract cancers--mass screening

The limitation of detectability and curability in terms of current techniques (screening and details) were sought in otherwise healthy examinees. Not a few cancers were present in the alimentary tract, except for the stomach, in these otherwise healthy examinees who voluntarily underwent gastric cancer mass screening. The prognosis of alimentary tract cancers deteriorates in the descending, following order: colon cancer, stomach cancer, and esophageal cancer. The survival rate of primary liver cancer, cholecyst cancer, and pancreas cancer is extremely low. Unless new techniques are developed in these diagnoses, no improvement in the survival rate can be anticipated.     

In vitro analysis of the change in resistance of Chlamydia trachomatis under exposure to sub-MIC levofloxacin for a therapeutic term

BACKGROUND: While fluoroquinolone-resistant Chlamydia trachomatis strains have not been clinically isolated, they were isolated in an in vitro study recently. METHODS: To determine whether C. trachomatis strains develop resistance under sub-MIC antibacterial exposure in a clinical therapeutic term, C. trachomatis strains were exposed to sub-MIC levofloxacin (LVFX) for about 2 weeks. The MIC of LVFX was measured and DNA fingerprinting was performed every 72 h by PCR using random primers. RESULTS: There was almost no change in the MIC under exposure to 0.125 microg/ml LVFX. However, some mutational changes in DNA fingerprints developed. CONCLUSIONS: In clinical therapeutic terms, resistant strains of C. trachomatis will probably not develop, even if sub-MIC LVFX is employed.     

Severe <Emphasis Type="Italic">Chlamydophila psittaci</Emphasis> pneumonia rapidly diagnosed by detection of antigen in sputum with an immunochromatography assay

We report a case of severe Chlamydophila (Chlamydia) psittaci pneumonia rapidly diagnosed by detection of antigen in sputum with an immunochromatography assay. The patient was admitted to our hospital because of shock, disturbance of consciousness, accidental hypothermia, and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome, and he recovered after administration of intravenous erythromycin and high-dose methylpredonisolone therapy. Psittacosis was confirmed by detection of 16S rRNA gene of C.psittasi in sputum with multiplex-polymerase chain reaction analysis. Serological responses to C. psittasi, C. trachomatis, and C. pneumoniae were also evaluated, and serological cross-reactivity was observed between each species. We consider that the commercially available immunochromatography assay for Chlamydia species can be helpful for rapid diagnosis of Chlamydia infection of the respiratory tract. Hereafter, further examination will be necessary regarding pretreatment of specimens or detection sensitivity and specificity.     

Oesophageal coins invisible on chest radiography: a case report

Background

Coins are made of metal, which is generally radiopaque, and so physicians often have the misconception that all coins are detectable by radiography. Here, we report a case of intentionally swallowed coins in the oesophagus of an adult; the coins could not be detected on chest radiography but were detected using computed tomography (CT).

Case presentation

A 46-year-old woman with a history of depression presented to the emergency department after an intentional medication overdose and ingestion of two Japanese 1-yen coins. She complained of persistent retrosternal discomfort. In order to confirm whether the coins were in the oesophagus or trachea, an anteroposterior chest radiograph was obtained; however, no coins were detected. Owing to her persistent symptoms, a chest CT was performed. On the initial CT scan, two 1-yen coins were observed in the oesophagus: one in the middle oesophagus and the other in the lower oesophagus. After the scanning, the patient drank water with permission, but vomited. No coins were found in her vomit, and the symptoms of retrosternal discomfort had completely disappeared. A subsequent CT scan revealed that the two 1-yen coins were in the patient’s stomach.

Conclusions

Japanese 1-yen coins are made of 100% aluminium, which is less radiopaque than the metals that make up coins (nickel, bronze, and lead), and so, they were not visible via chest radiography in our case. Detecting very small or thin radiolucent foreign bodies is not possible using a chest radiograph or contrast oesophagram, but is possible via CT. CT is both increasingly convenient and non-invasive, unlike endoscopy or bronchoscopy, and so, the use of CT scans should be considered in cases of possible radiolucent foreign body ingestion.

     

Comparison of Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score and CIS (cellular injury score) for scoring of severity for patients with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS)

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the usefulness of cellular injury score (CIS) and Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score for determination of the severity of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS). DESIGN: A prospective observational study. SETTING: A medical and surgical intensive care unit (ICU) of a teaching hospital. Patients: Forty-seven consecutive MODS patients. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: SOFA score and CIS were measured every day for 12 months for 47 MODS patients. Comparison was made of the SOFA score and CIS for usefulness in the scoring of severity of MODS in 26 survivors and 21 non-survivors. In addition, receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis was used to determine the usefulness of these two indexes as predictors of prognosis. No significant differences were found on admission between the survivors and non-survivors, but significant differences between the two subgroups (p < 0.001) were found in maximum value within 1 week after admission and maximum value during the course of treatment for both indexes. Analysis of changes after admission indicated that significant differences between survivors and non-survivors began to appear on day 3 of admission for both indexes; at that time SOFA score began to deteriorate in the non-survivors while CIS began to improve in the survivors. ROC analysis demonstrated that the area under the ROC curve was 0.769 for SOFA scores and 0.760 for CIS. CONCLUSIONS: Both SOFA score and CIS sequentially reflected the severity of MODS. Furthermore, they were comparable in diagnostic value as predictors of prognosis. These findings may indicate the possibility that MODS is a summation of effects of cellular injury. In addition, sequential evaluation of both SOFA score and CIS would provide a more accurate prediction of prognosis than conventional methods.     

Immature granulocyte count after liver transplantation.

We evaluated the significance of immature granulocyte (IG) count during the clinical course after liver transplantation. We counted IG using the flow cytometric method with CD16, CD11b, and CD45 antibodies. Samples were obtained from 31 patients in the Department of Transplantation and Immunology, and we determined (i) the distribution of IG peak value, (ii) the distribution of IG peak time-points, (iii) the clinical background of patients with high IG, and (iv) the clinical course of high IG cases. We observed the appearance of IG (100/microl or higher) in the majority of the patients (23 out of 31 patients; 74.2%). The IG peak was detected on the 19th day after transplantation. We observed serious complications, such as melena, rejection, or severe infection, in high IG (500/microl or higher) cases. We observed instances of inflammation with low C-reactive protein (CRP) value in the presence of IG. We believe that IG is a useful marker to monitor inflammation.     

In vitro inhibitory effects of hinokitiol on proliferation of Chlamydia trachomatis

The inhibitory effects of hinokitiol (beta-thujaplicin) on Chlamydia trachomatis D/UW-3/Cx were shown by MIC, minimum lethal concentration (MLC), and preinoculation minimal microbicidal concentration assays using HeLa 229 cells. The MIC and the MLC were both 32 microg/ml. Further evaluation of hinokitiol as a topical agent against C. trachomatis is warranted.