Isho-ho was used to successfully treat three cases of muscular weakness. The first case was a 59-year-old woman. In May of 1993, she began to suffer from a feeling of general lethargy. The condition was diagnosed as multiple myositis, and prednisolone was administered. However, since she still experienced loss of strength in the lower limbs, she was introduced to the authors' department for treatment in August of 1994. Administration of Isho-ho improved the loss of strength in the lower limbs and increased her grip strength.
The second case was a 42-year-old woman who complained of unusual sensations in the tips of her fingers and toes starting in mid-September, 1994. In November of the same year, she began to experience a loss of strength in the limbs. In February of 1995, the condition was diagnosed as chronic inflammatory demyelinatory multiple neuropathy by the same department, and large doses of steroids were administered. Although this treatment delayed the loss of strength in the lower back and legs, actual improvement in the condition did not occur until Isho-ho was given.
The third case involved a 63-year-old man who began to experience a loss of strength in the lower limbs in 1984. In 1988, the loss of strength became pronounced. In June of the same year, he sought treatment at the authors' department, and the condition was diagnosed as bulbar myelinic muscular atrophy. In October of 1993, he was unable to get out of bed unassisted, and was admitted to the authors' department. He was given Isho-ho, and reported a decrease in the feeling of a loss of strength in the lower limbs, and a disappearance of greater pectoral muscle spasms. These results suggest that Isho-ho is not only effective for loss of strength in the lower limbs, but may also be efficacious for loss of strength, numbness and muscle spasms in the upper limbs.

Keishi-kyokei-ka-bukuryo-byakujutsu-to has been traditionally used for acute infectious diseases, such as the common cold, accompanied by epigastric discomfort and tenderness. However, the specific dosage for chronic diseases has not been clearly set yet. This study involved 4 cases with headaches, dull headaches, stiff shoulders and lumbago, so called neck, shoulder and arm syndrome which responded to Keishi-kyokei-kabukuryo-byakujutsu-to. The experience of these cases suggests that conditions indicating Keishi-kyokei-kabukuryo-byakujutsu-to have the following features: (1) dry skin, (2) edema and impressions of teeth at the rim of the tongue, (3) tenderness upon pressure in the epigastric region and sound of fluctuating liquid in the stomach, (4) Ki-deficiency.

We report a case of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) that showed improvement after treatment with Daiseiryu-to-kadaiou. The patient was a 77-year-old woman diagnosed with RA in 1988. She had been visiting our department regularly since 1994. Oral steroids were used for two weeks in May 1994, but were discontinued due to a bacterial infection of the artificial femoral head. Thereafter, treatment was continued with bucillamine, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and various Kampo medicines. Joint pain worsened in November 2001. She was hospitalized on **********, as the CRP level had elevated to 15.2mg/dl. She had been taking bucillamine for seven years, but it had already been assessed as ineffective. It was discontinued upon hospitalization, and treatment with Daiseiryu-to-kadaiou was immediately begun. By ******, the patient judged the pain in both knees to have improved by about 50 percent. Moreover, the CRP level decreased to 2.4mg/dl by *******. The Lansbury index also improved from 100 percent to 69 percent during her hospitalization, and she was discharged on *******. Based on this experience, it is suggested that the prescription of Daiseiryu-to-kadaiou be considered in the treatment of RA patients.

We report two cases of ulcerative colitis successfully treated with Kigi-kenchu-to. Case One was a 35-year-old male. He had been diagnosed with ulcerative colitis at another hospital, had been receiving corticosteroid (prednisolone) treatment, but his symptoms (abdominal pain, diarrhea and hematochezia) improved little. He visited our department and was admitted. Treatment with Kigi-kenchu-to for 2 weeks improved his symptoms and colonoscopic findings, and he was discharged.
Case Two was a 28-year-old female. She had been diagnosed with ulcerative colitis at another hospital. She had received modern medicinal treatments, including steroid pulse therapy and granulocytapheresis for 10 years. But her symptoms (abdominal pain, diarrhea and hematochezia more than 10 times a day) showed little improvement. She visited our department, and Kampo treatment with Kigi-kenchu-to-ka-gaiyo-akyo was begun. After 4 weeks, her symptoms and colonoscopic results had improved. Based on these experiences, it is suggested that Kigi-kenchu-to might be an effective formulation in the treatment of ulcerative colitis.

We report two cases of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) successfully treated with Kampo formulae including Uzu (aconiti tuber). The 1st case was a 33-year-old male. Since the age of 20, he had stiffness and pain in his back. At 26 years of age, he was diagnosed with AS by a nearby orthopedist. When he consulted our department in 1997, X-ray examination revealed a Bamboo spine appearance. Because coldness exacerbated the pain, we prescribed Uzu-to. Together with a decrease in inflammatory reaction, his pain and quality of life were improved. The 2nd case was a 24-year-old male. He had left hip joint pain since the age of 14, and at 16 was diagnosed with AS and treated with NSAIDs. Methotrexate (MTX) had also been prescribed from the age of 23, since the pain of other joints and back was gradually progressive with consistently positive inflammation. He did not, however, improve on MTX, and visited our department in 2002. His HLA-B27 was positive, while iliosacral arthritis was also noted. Uzukeishi-to was then prescribed, resulting in decreased pain, alleviation of restricted motion, and an improved inflammation reaction. This suggests that Kampo formulae which include Uzu may be useful in the treatment of AS.

Wells' syndrome (eosinophilic cellulitis), whose etiology is idiopathic, is clinically characterized by solitary or multiple cellulitis-like eruptions which occur on the extremities and trunk. Corticosteroids are usually used for palliative treatment, but relapses are often observed. We observed an 8 year-old patient with Wells' syndrome successfully treated with Kampo medicines. In 2001, skin eruptions appeared on his extremities. In 2002, a histopathologic examination determined his disease to be Wells' syndrome, and corticosteroids were subsequently used for treatment. In January 2007, his skin eruptions worsened, and he first visited our outpatient clinic in May. After oral administration with keigairengyoto, his skin eruptions were slightly improved, but afterwards, they again worsened. In June, jumihaidokuto was administered instead of the former prescription, and the skin conditions had begun to improve. Because dry skin appeared in November, keigairengyoto was again added. With these treatments, his skin eruptions stably improved. In previous reports, Kampo medicines had not been used for the treatment of Wells' syndrome. This case, however, suggests that Kampo medicines are a candidate for the treatment of Wells' syndrome.

We report a case of a patient with steroid-dependent nephrotic syndrome, who achieved complete remission with a combination of steroid therapy and Bunsho-to. The patient was a 27-year-old female who became aware of edema, and was diagnosed as suffering from focal glomerular sclerosis (glomerulosclerosis) with nephrotic syndrome in November 1992. She responded to steroid therapy, but nephrotic syndrome relapsed frequently after the repeated reduction of steroids. In July 1995, she came to our hospital, and was diagnosed as having a recurrence of nephrotic syndrome. Although the combination therapy of steroid and Kampo formulas, Shinbu-to or Shimotsu-to and/or Keigairengyo-to, was effective, an exacerbation of nephrotic syndrome occurred after steroid therapy was discontinued, in July 1997. The prescription was changed to Bunsho-to, and steroid therapy was re-initiated with 10mg of prednisolone daily. As a result, she achieved complete remission. The steroid therapy could be discontinued in July 1999, and now she has taken Bunsho-to only for 18 months. But the complete remission of nephrotic syndrome has been maintained.

A pregnant woman suffering from subchorionic hematoma (which had not responded to any Western medicine) was in danger of having a miscarriage. She was treated successfully with Shimi-kyogai-to-kami. When she was in the tenth week of pregnancy, lower abdominal pain and genital bleeding started and continued despite the administration of carbazochrome sodium sulfonate, tranexamic acid and ritodrine hydrochloride. We initiated Shimi-kyogai-to-kami in the 17th week of the pregnancy, and her symptoms improved within four weeks. The hematoma disappeared in less than five weeks. She made satisfactory progress without recurrence and gave birth to a baby boy weighing 2628g in the 37th week of the pregnancy. It is possible that therapy based on Kampo diagnosis is useful in the treatment of subchorionic hematoma. Moreover, it seems that Shimi-kyogai-to is safer than Kyuki-kyogai-to in the treatment of pregnant women.

We reported a case of a 69-year-old male who had been diagnosed with left eye glaucoma with surgical indication complicated by an eyesight view obstacle. His left intraocular pressure did not decrease regardless of the eye drop treatment he underwent at another hospital. At the initial visit to our hospital, his left intraocular pressure was 27 mmHg. As we noted marked tympanitic sounds in his abdomen, we prescribed hangekobokuto. After one month of his medication, his left eye intraocular pressure fell to 22 mmHg ; furthermore, the marked abdominal tympanitic sounds disappeared. Two years after his initial treatment, his left intraocular pressure still stayed generally within the normal range, and it did not require surgery. In this case, predominant sympathetic nervous system may have been the mechanism behind some cases of increased intraocular pressure ; therefore, the possibility that hangekobokuto reduces intraocular pressure by acting on this was suggested. As there have been no such reports that hangekobokuto itself has an effect on intraocular pressure decrease, this is considered as a novel case.

We investigated prescriptions and drug costs at admission and discharge for 35 patients hospitalized in Department of Japanese Oriental (Kampo) Medicine, Chiba University Hospital from September 2006 to October 2008. They recovered after Kampo therapy from various non-acute diseases. The number of western drugs decreased from 3.7 at admission to 2.7 at discharge, thus their drug costs per day significantly decreased from302.1yen to 227.6 yen. The cost of Kampo medicines themselves, on the other hand, did not decrease significantly. Total drug costs, however, were significantly reduced from 437.8 yen at admission to 348.0 yen at discharge, so patients' overall costs were reduced by 20%. These results indicated that the proper use of Kampo medicine for various diseases would reduce drug costs and the impact of treatment expenses on medical economics, with improvement in disease outcomes.