We medicated14atopic dermatitis patients who had erythema of the face with byakkokaninjinto. Before prescribing byakkokaninjinto for each patient, a questionnaire on their subjective symptoms or constitutions was carried out. Moreover, in order to evaluate the effect of byakkokaninjinto and the transition of subjective symptoms, such as a hot flushes and thirst of the throat, condition diaries were prepared, and the grade of each symptom was scored by the patients themselves during treatment.These results demonstrated that byakkokaninjinto was effective for patients who had severe hot flushes of the face.
symptoms <1> ; Hot flushes ; Clinical ; Face ; Dermatitis, Atopic

A 50-year-old female developed severe dermatitis on her face during topical therapy with Shiun-ko and Taitsu-ko. The skin lesions almost disappeared in two weeks with oral steroid therapy and did not recur. Patch testing showed positive reactions to Shiun-ko, Taitsu-ko and Lithospermi radix, and beeswax, which were constituents of Shiun-ko and Taitsu-ko. The result suggests that the patient was sensitized with these topical medicaments and developed allergic contact dermatitis.

Schamberg disease is a subtype of idiopathic pigmentary purpura, which manifests with petechiae. It is assumed to be caused by venous microcirculatory disturbance, or an immunological and allergic mechanism. We report a 55-year-old Japanese male with Schamberg disease successfully treated with keishibukuryogan prepared at a hospital pharmacy. The patient had purpuric eruptions in his both lower legs at first, and brownish pigmentation enlarged with purpura. A dermatologist had diagnosed this, from the clinical findings, as Schamberg disease. We administered keishibukuryogan to the patient because his pathological condition was considered as oketsu. In order to improve effectiveness, keishibukuryogan was manufactured according to our own modification. The eruptions have reduced gradually, and about four months later, have mostly resolved. A Kampo therapy utilizing unseiin has been reported to be effective against idiopathic pigmentary purpura in previous studies. We suggest that a Kampo treatment with keishibukuryogan seems to be effective against idiopathic pigmentary purpura through improvements of microcirculation and inflammation.

Postoperative cardiac function and the occurrence of arrythmia depend upon myocardial protection during open heart surgery in severe concentric hypertrophy. The effect of myocardial protection was evaluated in terms of several released cardiac enzymes before and after reperfusion, and postoperative left ventricular (LV) cardiac function from cardiac pool scintigram in 21 cases with aortic stenosis (AS Group). These data were compared with 20 cases with aortic regurgitation (AR Group). Heart weight and aortic cross-clamping time were not significantly different in these two groups. The enzymatic values in peak total creatine-kinase (CK) and peak CK-MB fraction were higher in the AS group than in the AR group, and peak GOT was significantly elevated in the AS group (peak GOT: 93±32 in AS group, 64±17IU/l in the AR group, p<0.01). Among the cases in the AS group, six cases with LV small cavity (LVDd<4cm) and severe concentric hypertrophy were associated with high values of released enzyme and the occurrence of ventricular arrythmia. Postoperative cardiac function was estimated from both systolic parameters such as LV ejection fraction (LVEF) or peak ejection rate (PER) and diastolic parameters such as peak filling rate (PFR) or early diastolic filling rate (1/3PFR). Postoperative LVEF and PER improved to normal control levels in the AS group with preoperatively depressed systolic function, although values were decreased in the AR group with impaired systolic function. The postoperative early diastolic peak filling rate did not recover to control levels in the AS group as well as the AR group, and was impaired in the AS group with severe concentric hypertrophy due to elevated chamber stiffness and the delay of time to peak filling rate. In severe concentric hypertrophy, we used several techniques for myocardial protection of terminal blood cardioplegia, and gradually increased reperfusion pressure and LV venting after reperfusion. Late results revealed a good clinical course in all 21 cases except for the occurrence of arrythmia in three.

Left ventricular wall motion was evaluated after mitral valve replacement (MVR). MVR for mitral regurgitation (MR) was performed with preservation of both anterior and posterior chordae tendineae (Group I, n=12) or posterior chordae tendineae (Group II, n=9). MVR for mitral stenosis was performed with the preservation of the posterior chordae alone (MS Group, n=12). Postoperative regional wall motion was analyzed from the shortening fraction (SF) of the centerline method in 5 of antero-basal (AB), anterolateral (AL), apical (AP), diaphragmatic (DP) and posterobasal (PB) regions. The percentage of post-operative SF for preoperative value (%SF) was compared between Group I and Group II. The value of %SF improved much more in Group I than in Group II at the AL and AP regions. %EF was more significantly increased in Group I than in Group II, although postoperative ESVI and EDVI decreased in both groups. In the MS Group, EF, ESVI and EDVI did not change after surgery. The regional wall motion improved except in the calcified PB region. These results demonstrated that the preservation of both anterior and posterior chordae tendineae for MR was a useful procedure to improve postoperative LV regional wall motion. The preservation of posterior chordae for MS was sufficient to improve the regional wall motion except in the calcified submitral region.