In 1996, our medical school introduced symposium-style learning that is focused on recent advances in medical science as a regular undergraduate program for 6th-year students. The goals of this program are as follows: 1) to teach that good scientific research is essential to support high-quality medical education and medical care, 2) to have students enjoy research in a way they cannot in the ordinary curriculum, and 3) to stimulate interest in research in medical students who may become researchers in the future. Although a long-term survey is needed to evaluate the effects of this kind of learning strategy, an analysis of questionnaires showed that it was effective for the intended purposes. Today, the content of medical education has become diversified, and the social demands on medicine have changed greatly. Thus, we believe it is necessary to develop an education program separately from traditional ones that are primarily oriented to transmission of knowledge.

The aim of this study was to clarify the comorbidities of patients with Leriche syndrome and ischemic heart disease. We enrolled 26 patients with Leriche syndrome and who had undergone preoperative coronary angiography were enrolled. The comorbidities of diabetes, hypertension, and coronary artery disease developed in more than half of Leriche patients with Leriche syndrome. Marked coronary artery disease was diagnosed in 14 patients, 7 of whom underwent coronary artery bypass surgery. The Revascularization procedures performed in patients with Leriche syndrome were anatomical aortofemoral bypass in 15 and an extra-anatomical axillofemoral bypass in 9. In 2 cases of extra-anatomical bypass, occlusion developed in the long-term.

It has been demonstrated that atrial fibrillation (AF) frequently occurs after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and may cause cerebral infarction. The purpose of this research is to clarify the risk factors of AF in patients who underwent off-pump CABG (OPCABG). In this study, 142 patients (111 men and 31 women) were enrolled with an average age of 67 years old (range, 33-83). According to multivariate analysis, age and the preoperative peak early (E)/late (A) diastolic velocities ratio (E/A) were the independent predictors of postoperative AF. Patients who suffered from postoperative AF required a significantly longer hospital stay.