Screening for musculoskeletal problems in children using a questionnaire

Background

On April 1, 2016, the Ministerial ordinance was enforced, and musculoskeletal examination of the extremities was made mandatory. From 2008, the University of us started musculoskeletal direct examination. To expand the examination, from 2016, we started to use the marksheet-type questionnaire. This study aimed to report the results of a musculoskeletal examination and investigate the association between musculoskeletal examination and age/gender and reports the reliability of the collected questionnaire data.

Biochemical activities of lysosomal acid hydrolases in leukemic cells

The biochemical activities of 8 lysosomal acid hydrolases in leukemic cells from 48 patients were examined. Characteristic alterations were found in α-mannosidase, β-galactosidase and N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase activities of leukemic cells. The level of α-mannosidase activity was much higher in myelo(mono)genous leukemias (AML, AMoL, AMMoL, CML and CMMoL) than in lymphogenous ones (ALL, T-cell leukemia, hairy cell leukemia and CLL) without exception. The β-galactosidase activity also differed as a result of α-mannosidase, except in T-cell leukemia. In T-cell leukemia it was within the range of normal lymphocytes, but in the other lymphogenous leukemias it was significantly below normal. N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase activity in myelo(mono)genous leukemic cells was above the range of normal granulocytes. The changes in these enzyme levels were consistent. The lymphocytic or myelocytic nature of three cases of acute undifferentiated leukemia could be determined by enzyme studies. In two cases it was lymphocytic and in one it was myelocytic. The enzymatic abnormalities were also found in morphologically mature neutrophils from patients with not only chronic types (CML, CMMoL) but also acute types (AMoL, AMMoL) of leukemias, and were similar to those of their respective leukemic cells. Analysis of lysosomal enzymes (at least three of those mentioned above), can elucidate one of the biochemical properties of leukemic cells and may be valuable in the differentiation of leukemias.     

Left ventricular asynergy in patients with impending myocardial infarction: two-dimensional echocardiographic assessment

To determine the clinical significance of regional left ventricular asynergy in patients with impending myocardial infarction, we recorded two-dimensional echocardiograms (2DE) serially and performed coronary angiography immediately after the hospital admission in nine patients with initial impending infarction and their last anginal attacks were within 48 hours. Left ventricular asynergy on the first 2DE was observed in six of nine patients during symptom-free periods (Group A: LV asynergy group). Five of the six patients had significant coronary artery lesions (greater than or equal to 75% stenosis) in at least one major coronary artery. Intracoronary filling defects were detected in four of the five patients. Another three patients without asynergy (Group B) had significant fixed stenosis. Coronary artery spasm was observed in two patients during coronary angiography, but no patient had intracoronary filling defects. Intracoronary nitroglycerin (0.1-0.3 mg) reduced the severity of coronary artery narrowing in two patients. In addition, urokinase (240,000-480,000 IU) via the corresponding vessel (PTCR) in the remaining seven patients resulted in reduction in the severity of coronary artery stenosis in four patients, but not in the remaining three patients. Left ventricular wall movement in the asynergy group improved rapidly and no asynergy was observed by the seventh hospital day in five of the six patients. Successful PTCR treatment resulted in improvement of left ventricular wall movement. No asynergy was found in the non-asynergy group throughout their hospitalizations. These findings indicated that abnormal left ventricular wall movement is found in patients with impending myocardial infarction, even during symptom-free periods, but the wall movement gradually improves. The 2DE observations are useful for estimating the clinical status and for planning precise therapy for impending myocardial infarction.     

Dissecting aneurysm of the vertebral artery as a cause of Wallenberg's syndrome

Although it is well known that Wallenberg's syndrome is caused by occlusion of the vertebral artery (VA) or the posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA), the etiology of the occlusion is rarely documented. During the course of Wallenberg's syndrome, patients often complain of headache. We thought that these headaches might be caused by dissecting aneurysm (DA) of the vertebral artery, and so we studied the incidence of DA in our cases with Wallenberg's syndrome. Although many variants exist, Wallenberg's syndrome encompasses several neurological symptoms due to a disorder of the nucleus and nerve tracts located in the lateral part of the medulla. We diagnosed our patients as having Wallenberg's syndrome on the basis of symptoms such as loss of pain and temperature sensation in the unilateral face and contralateral body, cerebellar ataxia, and dysphasia. We investigated 22 cases of Wallenberg's syndrome over a five-year period, and excluded patients who developed subarachnoid hemorrhage upon onset of the syndrome. Our cases can be divided into two groups; one with severe stenosis or occlusion of VA (n = 15) and the other with occlusion of PICA (n = 5). The angiograms of the two remaining patients showed no abnormal findings. The mean age of the VA group (42.5 yrs.) was younger than that of the PICA group (64.2 yrs.). The age distribution of the PICA group is similar to that of other occlusive cerebrovascular diseases. Seven cases of the VA group demonstrated aneurysmal dilatation and luminal stenosis, and so they were diagnosed as having dissecting aneurysm of VA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Changes in the basal ganglia and thalamus following reperfusion after complete cerebral ischaemia

We report specific changes bilaterally in the basal ganglia and thalamus following reperfusion after complete cerebral ischaemia. A 69-year-old man, resuscitated after cardiac arrest, showed symmetrical lowdensity lesions in the head of the caudate nucleus and lentiform nucleus on CT. MRI revealed methaemoglobin derived from minor haemorrhage in the basal ganglia and thalamus, not evident on CT. We suggest that this haemorrhage results from diapedesis of red blood cells through the damaged capillary endothelium following reperfusion.     

Effects of proton pump inhibitor on gastric mucosa hemodynamics and tissue oxygenation in anesthetized rats.

Proton pump inhibitors have been reported to have a cytoprotective action in addition to the anti-secretory action of acid. The precise mechanism, however, remains obscure. In this study, the effects of proton pump inhibitors (omeprazole and NC-1300) on gastric mucosa hemodynamics and tissue oxygenation were investigated using organ reflectance spectrophotometry in a hemorrhagic shock-reperfusion model involving anesthetized rats. Neither drug affected gastric mucosa hemodynamics nor tissue oxygenation in the basal state before hemorrhage. During the hemorrhagic shock state, however, these drugs maintained tissue oxygenation and reduced ulcer formation, although they did not show a significant effect on gastric mucosa blood volume. The results suggest that both proton pump inhibitors have an anti-ulcer action by maintaining mucosal oxygenation in addition to the anti-secretory activity of acid.