Clinical impact of complete atrioventricular block in patients with ST‐segment elevation myocardial infarction

Complete atrioventricular block (CAVB) is a common complication of ST‐segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Although STEMI patients complicated with CAVB had a higher mortality in the thrombolytic era, little is known about the impact of CAVB on STEMI patients who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). The study aimed at evaluating the clinical impact of CAVB on STEMI patients in the primary PCI era. We consecutively enrolled 1295 STEMI patients undergoing primary PCI within 24 hours from onset. Patients were divided into two groups according to the infarct location: anterior STEMI (n = 640) and nonanterior STEMI (n = 655). The outcomes were all‐cause death and major adverse cardiocerebrovascular events (MACCE) with a median follow‐up period of 3.8 (1.7–6.6) years. Eighty‐one patients (6.3%) developed CAVB. The incidence of CAVB was lower in anterior STEMI patients than in nonanterior STEMI (1.7% vs 10.7%, p < .05). Anterior STEMI patients with CAVB had a higher incidence of all‐cause deaths (82% vs 20%, p < .05) and MACCE (82% vs 25%, p < .05) than those without CAVB. Although higher incidence of all‐cause deaths was found more in nonanterior STEMI patients with CAVB compared with those without CAVB (30% vs 18%, p < .05), there was no significant difference in the incidence of MACCE (24% vs 19%). Multivariate analysis showed that CAVB was an independent predictor for all‐cause mortality and MACCE in anterior STEMI patients, but not in nonanterior STEMI. CAVB is rare in anterior STEMI patients, but remains a poor prognostic complication even in the primary PCI era.     

Liver-related events after direct-acting antiviral therapy in patients with hepatitis C virus-associated cirrhosis

Journal of Gastroenterology - Direct-acting antiviral (DAA) therapy enables a high rate of sustained virologic response (SVR) in patients with hepatitis C virus associated cirrhosis. However, the...     

Development of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with chronic hepatitis C who had a sustained virological response to interferon therapy: a multicenter, retrospective cohort study of 1124 patients.

BACKGROUND: Interferon (IFN) improves hepatic inflammation/fibrosis and reduces the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CH-C). However, HCC develops in some patients who have a sustained virological response (SVR) to IFN therapy. We designed this study to establish a follow-up protocol for patients with CH-C who have SVR to IFN therapy. METHODS: We retrospectively studied 1124 patients with CH-C who received IFN. RESULTS: HCC developed in 3.5% of patients with SVR to IFN. As compared with SVR patients without HCC, SVR patients with HCC were predominantly male (P=0.003), older at the initiation of IFN therapy (P=0.002), and at a more advanced histologic stage of disease (P<0.001). However, three of the 13 SVR HCC patients had mild fibrosis. The mean interval from IFN therapy to the detection of HCC in SVR HCC patients was 5.8 years and did not differ significantly from that in non-SVR HCC patients (P=0.304). Although most patients with HCC received curative therapy, the prognosis of some SVR HCC patients was poor, probably because of insufficient follow-up, resulting in delayed detection of HCC. CONCLUSIONS: SVR patients with CH-C who are elderly, male, or have an advanced histologic stage are at a high risk for the development of HCC after IFN therapy. We recommend that SVR patients should be observed carefully for more than 10 years after the completion of IFN therapy, even if they only have early fibrosis.     

Comparison of the effects of predilution and postdilution hemodiafiltration on neutrophils, lymphocytes and platelets

Numerous studies have been carried out to investigate the solute removal efficiency of hemodiafiltration (HDF). However, the effect of the dilution mode on blood cell damage during HDF has not yet been examined in detail. Here, we compared predilution and postdilution HDF with respect to their effects on blood cells. Five patients were allocated to one session each of predilution HDF and postdilution HDF. Concentrations of interleukin (IL)-6, intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1, and platelet-derived microparticles (PDMP), and the phagocytotic and sterilizing functions of neutrophils before and after the HDF sessions were evaluated. Lymphocyte blastoid transformation induced by mitogens was also evaluated by measurement of the [³H]-thymidine uptake. The IL-6 and ICAM-1 concentrations decreased after predilution HDF, and increased after postdilution HDF. Lymphocyte blastoid transformation was more pronounced after predilution HDF than after postdilution HDF. There was no significant difference in PDMP between the dilution modes. We conclude that predilution HDF could be more favorable for dialysis patients than postdilution HDF from the point of view of the effects on the blood cells, especially neutrophils and lymphocytes.     

Successful bridge therapy of gilteritinib to cord blood transplantation in relapsed acute myeloid leukemia after bone marrow transplantation

The FMS-related tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) internal tandem duplication mutations (FLT3-ITD) positive acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a disease with a dismal outcome. Gilteritinib is a second-generation FLT3 inhibitor with activity against ITD and high affinity toward the FLT3 receptor, thereby showing therapeutic potential for relapsed/refractory FLT3-mutated AML. Bone marrow transplantation (BMT) from a human leukocyte antigen (HLA) identical sibling donor was performed in a 38-year-old Japanese male with FLT3-ITD positive AML. Neutrophil engraftment (>0.5 × 10⁹/L) was achieved on day 16, and bone marrow remission was revealed on day 32. The patient's AML relapsed hematologically four months after BMT and was resistant to salvage chemotherapy. Gilteritinib was administered and the patient achieved non-remission but ‘stable disease’ status according to the response criteria. During administration, liver damage was observed but controllable. The patient received cord blood transplantation (CBT) as the second hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) three months after relapse and achieved second remission. There was no evidence of recurrence of AML four months after CBT. This case demonstrates that gilteritinib can control FLT3-ITD positive AML that relapsed early after initial HSCT and can bridge to second HSCT.     

Cellular and peptide requirements for in vitro clonal deletion of immature thymocytes.

Thymocytes from DO10 T-cell-receptor transgenic mice undergo apoptosis, or programmed cell death, when chicken ovalbumin-(323-339) peptide is administered in vivo. Using DO10 mice thymocytes, we have now developed a simple in vitro model system that recapitulates the in vivo clonal-deletion process. When transgenic thymocytes were cocultured with fibroblasts, B cells, or thymic nurse cell lines (all bearing I-Ad) in the presence of chicken ovalbumin-(323-339), deletion of the transgenic TCR+CD4+CD8+ thymocytes was seen within 8-20 hr. Thymocytes designed to bear I-Ad on their surface could mediate the deletion themselves. Thus, thymocyte clonal deletion entirely depends on the stage at which the thymocytes are vulnerable to the onset of apoptosis, rather than on the nature of the peptide antigen-presenting cells. Furthermore, thymic nurse cell line TNC-R3.1 could cause deletion, strongly suggesting that some thymic epithelial/stromal components are potentially capable of participating in negative selection. In all cases examined, little deletion could be induced at a peptide concentration less than 10 nM, thus defining the minimum amount of peptide antigen required for negative selection. The peptide-dependent in vitro negative-selection system will allow further dissection of the molecular and cellular processes involved in clonal deletion due to apoptosis in the thymus.     

Assessing head and trunk symmetry during sleep using tri-axial accelerometers

Using two types of small, lightweight tri-axial accelerometers, we obtained evidence for the effectiveness of an approach for assessing head–trunk symmetrical or asymmetrical positions during sleep. First, we assessed the accuracy of our monitoring system in five healthy young adults (age range, 22–24 years). The participants wore acceleration monitors on the sternum and forehead; then spent 5?min in six different positions. Once accuracy was confirmed, we assessed head–trunk symmetry during night-time sleep in 10 healthy children (age range, 3–13 years) and 10 young adults (age range, 21–26 years) in their home environments. All participants wore the monitors during one night’s sleep in their homes. After computing head–trunk positions using the orientation data obtained by the accelerometers, head and trunk symmetry were evaluated. The head and trunk positions were correctly detected: the positional data from the trunk had 99% agreement, and the data from the head had 96% agreement. Both the young adults and children were observed to spend time with the head–trunk in asymmetric positions; however, the subjects changed position frequently so the asymmetrical postures were mobile. We concluded that the proposed monitoring system is a reliable and valid approach for assessing head–trunk symmetry during sleep at home.

• Implications for Rehabilitation

• We propose a head and trunk symmetry monitoring system using accelerometers.

• The proposed system could accurately identify head and trunk position.

• Asymmetrical positioning was seen in healthy participants but it was not immobile.

     

Laparoscopic liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma with cirrhosis in a single institution

Background

In a statement by the second International Consensus Conference for Laparoscopic Liver Resection (LLR), minor LLR was confirmed to be a standard surgical practice, as it has become adopted by an increasing proportion of surgeons. However, it is unclear whether this applies to the more complex group of patients suffering from cirrhosis. Therefore, the aim of this retrospective study was to compare the feasibility and safety of LLR for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) between non-liver cirrhosis (NLC) patients and liver cirrhosis (LC) patients at a single high-volume laparoscopy center.

Methods

From the beginning of 2000 to the end of 2013, open liver resection (OLR) was performed in 99 HCC patients, and LLR was in 118. The HCC patients who underwent LLR were divided into NLC-LLR (n=60) and LC-LLR (n=58) groups, and we compare the short-term outcomes between them.

Results

There was no significant difference in the incidence of blood loss and transfusion requirements between the NLC-LLR group and the LC-LLR group, although wedge resection was mainly performed in the LC-LLR group. There was no significant difference in the complication rate between the two groups, and the remarkable finding was that there was a significantly lower incidence of postoperative ascites in the LC-LLR group than in the NLC-LLR group.

Conclusions

According to our experience, it appears that LLR for selected HCC patients with cirrhosis is a feasible and promising procedure that is associated with less blood loss and fewer postoperative complications, especially the incidence of postoperative ascites. Further investigations are clearly warranted.