The available period and kind of exercise for increasing osteo sono assessment index in women

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to determine the optimum period and kind of exercise which are more effective for increasing the calcaneus osteo sono assessment index (OSI) in adolescent women. METHODS: The subjects consisted of 600 female students aged from 19 to 21 studying at the Department of Food and Nutrition at Nakamura Gakuen University. The calcaneus OSI was measured by ultrasonic bone absorptiometry. The factors associated with an increased OSI were determined using piecewise linear regression analyses. RESULTS: Experience in performing impact-loading exercise either in junior high school or high school was found to be a significant predictive factor for increased calcaneus OSI after adjusting for age and weight. Regarding other exercise-related factors such as subjective intensity, frequency, hours at a time, and total duration of exercise, a piecewise liner regression analysis showed that a total duration of over 7 yr and a high subjective intensity of the impact-loading exercise during high school and junior high school periods caused a significant increase in the calcaneus OSI. However, the OSI decreased when the subjective intensity of the impact-loading exercise during the high school period was reported to be "very strenuous." CONCLUSIONS: Impact-loading exercise in junior high school and high school is important for increasing calcaneus OSI; however, impact-loading exercise in high school with a "very strenuous" subjective intensity was also found to possibly decrease the calcaneus OSI.     

Hepatic angiomyolipoma: report of changing size and internal composition on follow-up examination in two cases

We present two cases of hepatic angiomyolipoma in which the size and internal composition of the tumor changed during the course of follow-up study. The tissue elements composing the tumor are thought to grow or regress independently during the disease's clinical course. Radiologists should be aware that hepatic angiomyolipoma can change in size and internal composition during its natural course.     

MR detection of cytoplasmic fat in clear cell renal cell carcinoma utilizing chemical shift gradient-echo imaging

We attempted to determine whether cytoplasmic fat in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC) can be identified by chemical shift gradient-echo magnetic resonance imaging (CSI). CSI was performed for 22 clear cell RCCs and 30 other renal tumors (including 16 non-clear cell RCCs), all of which were surgically proven. Signal reduction in out-of-phase images of these tumors was retrospectively evaluated and compared. The signal loss ratio (SLR) was defined and calculated. Fat staining of specimens from 16 tumors was performed and correlated with SLR. SLR was significantly higher in clear cell RCCs than in non-clear cell RCCs (P < 0.001). There was a significant correlation between degree of fat staining positivity of the specimens and SLR (P < 0.01). When signal reduction in out-of-phase images suggested the diagnosis of clear cell RCC, correct diagnosis of this entity was made in resected renal tumors with sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 82%, 90%, and 87%, respectively. CSI can demonstrate cytoplasmic fat in clear cell RCCs, which helps to differentiate this entity from other RCCs.     

Induction of food intake by a noradrenergic system using clonidine and fusaric acid in the neonatal chick

To clarify noradrenergic systems on food intake of the neonatal chicks, we examined the effects of i.c.v injection of clonidine (CLON), an alpha2-receptor agonist, and fusaric (5-butylpicolinic) acid (FA), a dopamine (DA)-beta-hydroxylase (DBH) inhibitor. Although a high dose (250 ng) of CLON induced a narcoleptic response and reduced food intake, food intake at 30 min post-injection was enhanced by lower doses (25 and 50 ng) of CLON. Central administration of FA (25, 50 and 100 microg) increased food intake in a dose-dependent fashion. It is suggested that feeding behavior is stimulated by low levels of CLON and decreased by further production of norepinephrine (NE), and FA may play the disturbance of sleeping and then enhance food intake.     

Serum-free coculture of stromal and epithelial cells from benign prostatic hyperplasia with keratinocyte growth factor

We developed a serum-free coculture model of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) to clarify whether stromal cells stimulate growth of epithelial cells from BPH tissues. Epithelial and stromal cells from freshly isolated BPH tissue were cultured separately in defined serum-free WAJC 404/RPMI 1640 medium supplemented with insulin, transferrin, selenium, hydrocortisone, bovine serum albumin, epidermal growth factor, basic fibroblast growth factor and keratinocyte growth factor. (3)H-Tdr incorporation into epithelial cells and stromal cells was used as a measure of proliferation. When epithelial cells were cocultured with stromal cells, (3)H-Tdr incorporation into epithelial cells was increased in comparison to that in epithelial cells cultured alone. Dihydrotestosterone significantly increased this effect. It is likely that the in vitro coculture model reported here will be useful for isolating and understanding stromal cell-derived paracrine growth factor(s).     

Relapsed non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: detection and treatment

PURPOSE: To evaluate the optimal management strategy during clinical remission and after relapse in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). METHODS: Sixty-six patients with relapse of NHL from a state of clinical remission between 1987 and 1997 were analyzed retrospectively. The pattern of relapses, diagnostic methods used for relapses, and clinical outcome of salvage treatment were analyzed with attention to time after the achievement of clinical remission. RESULTS: Thirty-three relapses (50%) occurred within 12 months, and the remainder occurred gradually from 12-48 months after the first remission. Diagnosis of relapse in 61 of the 66 patients (93%) was made at unscheduled evaluations prompted by symptoms, on physical examinations, or because of high LDH levels. The 1- and 5-year cause-specific survival rates after relapse were 56.7% and 39.4%, respectively. The 1- and 5-year relapse-free survival rates were 50.1% and 35.0%, respectively. The 5-year relapse-free survival rate in patients with late relapse (49.5%) was significantly better than in those with early relapse (21.2%) (p<0.01). CONCLUSION: Time to relapse may be a useful factor to determine optimal management strategy in NHL patients.     

The influence of human T lymphotropic virus type I infection on the outcome of cardiovascular surgery

OBJECTIVE: Human T lymphotropic virus type I infects CD4(+) T cells and affects cell-mediated immunity. Cardiopulmonary bypass transiently alters lymphocyte subsets, resulting in a reduction in CD4(+) T cells and an increase in CD8(+) T cells. We proposed that cardiovascular operations and human T lymphotropic virus type I infection may act synergistically, resulting in serious damage to cell-mediated immunity. METHODS: A total of 517 consecutive patients who were preoperatively screened for anti-human T lymphotropic virus type I antibody and underwent cardiovascular operations with cardiopulmonary bypass were enrolled in this study. Of the 517 patients, 82 (16%) had positive test results for anti-human T lymphotropic virus type I antibody. The surgical outcome of patients with positive and negative results for anti-human T lymphotropic virus type I antibody was analyzed retrospectively. RESULTS: There was no difference between the 2 groups with respect to early mortality. Distribution of survival curve was also not significantly different (P =.5; mean follow-up duration, 2.4 +/- 1.8 years [range, 0-9.4 years] and 3.2 +/- 2.8 years [range, 0-9.8 years]) in the groups with positive and negative antibody results, respectively). In particular, long-term follow-up did not reveal adult T-cell leukemia or human T lymphotropic virus type I-associated myelopathy, and occurrence of neoplasm did not differ between groups. Early infectious complication was, however, significantly higher in the group with positive antibody results than in the group with negative results (P =.02). Logistic regression analysis revealed human T lymphotropic virus type I infection as a significant risk for this complication (P =.04; odds ratio, 2.5; 95% confidence interval, 1. 0-5.8). CONCLUSION: A combination of human T lymphotropic virus type I infection and cardiovascular operation is believed to increase the potential risk of infectious complications shortly after the operation. However, this synergistic effect seems to be transient and has little influence on long-term prognosis.     

The clinical statistics of the operations at the Department of Urology, Tokatsu Hospital: from 1994 to 1999

We investigated the clinical statistics of the operations and inpatients since the establishment of the department in June 1994 up to May 1999. The total number of inpatients was 1,269 (1,047 males and 222 females), and a total of 1,098 operations were performed. Extracorporeal shock wave lithotriopy (ESWL) was also introduced in 1997, and in addition, it seemed that the number of operations and inpatients would be increasing in future.