Devices for facial aesthetic improvement in the treatment of skeletal mandibular protrusion

Some techniques for the treatment of mandibular protrusion with consideration for aesthetic improvement of the face as a whole are described. The aesthetic inferiority complex in the mind of patients with masticatory disorders as the chief complaint should not be underestimated. Three techniques were used in this study; preoperative orthodontic treatment, preservation of the patient's self-image, and maintenance of beautiful relationship between the midfacial line and the nasolabial fold as well as the nasal ala.     

Heterotopic ossification around distal femur after total knee arthroplasty

Heterotopic ossification after total knee arthroplasty is not well recognized. We found heterotopic ossification around the distal femur in 10 (5%) of 221 knees after primary total knee arthroplasty and evaluated clinical findings as well as risk factors. The duration of follow-up ranged from 1 to 5 years. Most patients with heterotopic ossification showed clinical findings that were suspected of being early infection after surgery such as continuing low-grade fever and erythematous, warm, and swollen knees, whereas blood examinations were normal. Heterotopic ossification developed by a mean period of 5 weeks, and the size increased for a mean period of 9 weeks. The maximum size of the ossification was <5 cm in 9 knees and >5 cm in 1 knee. After that, the size decreased without any treatment in all knees, and the ossification finally disappeared in 2 knees. Osteoarthrosis and the presence of postoperative effusion were the significant risk factors in the development of heterotopic ossification. Although it is difficult to draw valid conclusions from our small study, heterotopic ossification at the distal femur after total knee arthroplasty needed no treatment and was not progressive, nor did it affect the short-term outcome in this study.     

Characterization of Habu thrombin-like enzyme (THLE) with a new n-terminal sequence from the venom of Trimeresurus flavoviridis (Habu)

A thrombin-like enzyme with a new amino-terminal sequence was isolated from the venom of Trimeresurus flavoviridis using Q-Sepharose, CM-Cellulose, and HW55 column chromatographies. Homogeneity was confirmed by the formation of a single band in polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The enzyme has a molecular weight of 29,000 Da. This thrombin-like enzyme was inhibited by p-amidinophenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride hydrochloride (p-APMSF), and dithiothreitol (DTT) suggesting that serines and disulfide bonds are involved in the expression of the enzyme's clotting activity. This thrombin-like enzyme hydrolyzes the Aalpha-chain and Bbeta-chain of bovine fibrinogen. The enzyme was stable to heat treatment.     

Surface dyslexia in a Japanese patient with semantic dementia: evidence for similarity-based orthography-to-phonology translation

We studied the reading performance of a Japanese-speaking patient, TI, with bilateral but asymmetrical (left more than right) temporal-lobe atrophy, severe anomia, and poor word comprehension. Most Japanese kanji characters correspond to several different legitimate pronunciations in different contexts, with varying degrees of correspondence consistency. TI made many errors in reading aloud words that violate statistically typical character-sound correspondences, especially for less common words, but had relatively preserved ability to read aloud strings in which the assignment of the typical pronunciation for each component character yields the correct pronunciation for the whole word. The degree of consistency of character-sound correspondences affected his performance on both words and nonwords in a graded manner. One interpretation is that TI's surface dyslexic reading reflects intact direct computation of phonology from orthography, but without the additional constraint from word meaning that is, in this framework, considered critical for correct pronunciation of lower-frequency words with atypical character-sound correspondences. Another interpretation is that TI's performance reflects partially damaged lexical knowledge of whole-word orthography and phonology, coupled with spared sublexcal knowledge of character-sound correspondence rules. Whichever of these interpretations is preferred, this study offers the most detailed information yet available on the characteristics of surface dyslexia in Japanese.     

Synchronous triple urogenital cancer (renal cancer,bladder cancer,prostatic cancer): a case report

A case of synchronous triple urogenital cancer, which was comprised of renal cell carcinoma of the left kidney, transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder, and adenocarcinoma of the prostate, is reported. A 72-year-old Japanese male patient was referred to our outpatient clinic with the complaint of asymptomatic hematuria. At that time, his serum of level of PSA was elevated to 20 ng/ml. Cystourethroscopy showed a papillary bladder tumor and coagula through the left urinary orifice. Ultrasonography, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging showed a mass lesion measuring about 6 cm by 5 cm in the left kidney. Angiography showed a hypervascular lesion measuring about 6 cm by 5 cm at the same site. Double cancer, consisting of renal cell carcinoma and transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder, was suspected and we performed left total nephroureterectomy, hilar lymphadenectomy, and transurethral rection of the bladder tumor, one month later. At the same time, we performed a biopsy of the prostate. Histological diagnosis was renal cell carcinoma, clear cell carcinoma and transitional cell carcinoma of urinary bladder. Histological diagnosis of the prostate biopsy was moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma. Since this case fulfilled the criteria of Warren and Gates, it was classified as synchronous triple urogenital cancer. A review of the literature revealed 17 authentic cases of triple urogenital cancer, of which 14 and 10 cases were reported as a combination of renal cancer, bladder cancer and prostatic cancer, in the world and in Japan, respectively. Furthermore, he had been exposed to the atomic bomb explosion in Hiroshima in 1945. This carcinogenic precursor may be related to the development of the triple cancer.     

Suppression of tumor growth and pulmonary metastasis in murine osteosarcoma using gene therapy

We evaluated the effect of gene therapy in the murine osteosarcoma cell line, LM8, which preferentially metastasizes to the lungs. LM8 cells were transduced with the gene for a herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSV-tk) or Escherichia coli beta-galactosidase (lacZ). We investigated the cytotoxicity of LM8 cells bearing an HSV-tk gene after treatment with ganciclovir (GCV). LM8 cells bearing an HSV-tk gene were more sensitive than non-transduced cells. The remarkable inhibition of tumor growth and pulmonary metastases was confirmed in vivo. Our findings indicated that GCV kills tumor cells transduced with HSV-tk in vitro and in vivo.     

Effects of imipramine on T cell subsets in olfactory bulbectomized mice

To elucidate the immunological outcome in antidepressant therapy, the effects of acute or chronic imipramine (IMP) treatment on T cell subsets were examined in sham-operated (SO) and olfactory bulbectomized (OB) mice. Olfactory bulbectomy decreased the ratio of Lyt2-positive suppressor T cells to L3T4-positive T helper cells. Acute IMP treatment did not exert any effect on the ratio in SO nor in OB mice. Chronic IMP administration was found to significantly increase the ratio in SO and OB mice and, as a result, the ratio was significantly higher in SO mice compared with the control, while the ratio was normalized in OB mice. The present study may be suggestive of the immune activation in depression and of the immunosuppressive effects of antidepressants.     

Serendipitous detection of Cushing's disease by FDG positron emission tomography and a review of the literature

A 70-year-old woman was referred for F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomographic (PET) imaging of the brain to evaluate progressive dementia and neuropsychiatric symptoms. Although she had a history of hypertension and diabetes mellitus, she did not exhibit phenotypic features of Cushing's disease. The FDG-PET images revealed marked FDG uptake in the pituitary gland but no evidence of degenerative dementia. Two macroadenomas were confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging. Endocrinologic evaluation revealed Cushing's disease. After surgical resection of the tumors, the patient's symptoms decreased markedly.