Pediatric thyroid cancer arising after treatment for pleuropulmonary blastoma

A 3-year-old female presented with a large tumor occupying the right thoracic space. Open biopsy revealed the pathological diagnosis of pleuropulmonary blastoma. After the first-line chemotherapy, the patient underwent surgical resection, then two courses of high-dose chemotherapy. Three years later, follicular carcinoma of the right thyroid lobe was found, so a right hemithyroidectomy was performed. Five months later, the thyroid tumor recurred. The remaining thyroid lobe was completely excised and radioiodine therapy was administered. The patient has remained tumor-free for 3 years. The etiology and treatment of the uncommon combination of pleuropulmonary blastoma and thyroid carcinoma is discussed.     

Development of Langerhans cell histiocytosis associated with chronic active Epstein-Barr virus infection

Chronic active Epstein-Barr virus (CAEBV) infection is characterized by a status of lymphoproliferative disease of EBV-infected cells, resulting in chronic or recurrent infectious mononucleosis-like symptoms. CAEBV is always accompanied by life-threatening complications. We report the case of a 2-year-old female patient with CAEBV who subsequently developed Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) presenting with bilateral exophthalmos, bone, and skin involvement. In situ hybridization for EBER revealed EBV-infected B-cells present in lesional tissue implying that interactions between EBV-infected B-cells and lesional Langerhans cells may be associated with the development of LCH.     

Does change of residence affect pollinosis? A study of Japanese university students

The effects of change of residence on pollinosis symptoms remain unclear. We investigated the effects of geographical change of residence on pollinosis symptoms among university freshmen. All freshmen (n = 2142) entering Shinshu University in 2011 completed self-administered questionnaires. Associations between history of pollinosis and environmental factors were assessed. Subjects were classified into three groups according to pollen count at previous residences (stationary, low pollen, and high pollen). Pollinosis both before and after relocation were compared among and within the groups. Of the 1558 subjects, 540 (34.7%) developed pollinosis before and 483 (31.0%) after entering university. The rates of pre- and post-university entrance pollinosis were 40.0 and 32.5% in the high pollen group (P < 0.001) but were similar in the other two groups. Pollinosis symptoms decreased among students that moved from high to low pollen areas, indicating that pollinosis was affected by geographic environmental factors.     

Autoradiographic localization of N-type VGCCs in gerbil hippocampus and failure of omega-conotoxin MVIIA to attenuate neuronal injury after transient cerebral ischemia.

In the mammalian central nervous system, transient global ischemia of specific duration causes selective degeneration of CA1 pyramidal neurons in hippocampus. Many of the ischemia-induced pathophysiologic cascades that destroy the neurons are triggered by pre- and postsynaptic calcium entry. Consistent with this, many calcium channel blockers have been shown to be neuroprotective in global models of ischemia. omega-Conotoxin MVIIA, a selective N-type VGCC blocker isolated from the venom of Conus magus, protects CA1 neurons in the rat model of global ischemia, albeit transiently. The mechanism by which this peptide renders neuroprotection is unknown. We performed high-resolution receptor autoradiography with the radiolabeled peptide and observed highest binding in stratum lucidum of CA3 subfield, known to contain inhibitory neurons potentially important in the pathogenesis of delayed neuronal death. This finding suggested that the survival of stratum lucidum inhibitory neurons might be the primary event, leading to CA1 neuroprotection after ischemia. Testing of this hypothesis required the reproduction of its neuroprotective effects in the gerbil model of global ischemia. Surprisingly, we found that omega-MVIIA did not attenuate CA1 hippocampal injury after 5 min of cerebral ischemia in gerbil. Possible reasons are discussed. Lastly, we show that the peptide can be used as a synaptic marker in assessing short and long-term changes that occur in hippocampus after ischemic injury.     

Effect of mydriasis and accommodation on intraocular pressure and pigment release in patients with the pigment dispersion syndrome

PURPOSE: To determine if mydriasis and accommodation affect intraocular pressure (IOP) and pigment release in patients with the pigment dispersion syndrome (PDS). MATERIAL AND METHODS: Seventeen patients (34 eyes) diagnosed with PDS were included in the study (10 men and 7 women). Tonometry was performed on all patients before, and at 1 and 2 hours after mydriasis and before, and at 1 and 2 hours after sustained reading. The statistical analysis was performed using the paired T-test. RESULTS: In both tests the differences in intraocular pressure values were not statistically significant. Pigment liberation occurred in 11.8% of patients after mydriasis but was not associated with an increase in IOP. CONCLUSION: Accommodation during sustained reading did not cause significant pigment release or an IOP rise.     

Pediculosis Capitis among Schoolchildren in Urban and Rural Areas of Eastern Poland

The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence of head pediculosis in the rural and urban environments of Lublin Province (eastern Poland) in 1996-2000 and to examine socioeconomic factors influencing distribution among schoolchildren. A total of 95,153 schoolchildren living in urban and rural areas were examined twice yearly by school nurses. The overall rate of head pediculosis differs significantly between rural (1.59%) and urban (0.48%) schools in eastern Poland. Children between 8 and 12 years old were most frequently infested. Pediculosis was observed most frequently in girls both in the urban (63.5%) and rural (75.3%) schools and this was related with hairstyles. The prevalence of pediculosis decreased with increasing life standards, i.e. with high income, accessibility and consumption of water and better health care systems. Our findings showed that prevalence of pediculosis capitis depends on the age and sex of the schoolchildren and their living conditions. Hygienic controls of schoolchildren by nurses are important in the elimination of Pediculus humanus capitis. Our results confirmed pediculosis capitis is still a problem in different environments, particularly with lower life standards and poorer economic conditions of health care.     

Renal Cell Carcinoma of Extraordinarily Large Size: A Case Report

One of our patients was a 66-year-old woman with a T2 renal cell carcinoma weighing 3900 g. Two years after radical nephrectomy the woman was alive and well. A survey of Japanese medical literature revealed that patients with renal cell carcinomas weighing more than 2000 g have an unexpectedly favorable prognosis with a 5-year survival rate of 76.9%.     

Computed tomography of parosteal osteosarcoma of the rib

The computed tomography findings in a case of radically resected parosteal osteosarcoma of the rib are reported. Computed tomography disclosed a huge ossifying mass with lobulated structure, ossifying rim, linear lucent zone between tumor and cortex, destruction of the affected rib cortex, and intramedullary involvement. These findings are specific to advanced parosteal osteosarcoma.