We have developed the new dynamometer to measure twist strength of upper limbs that was not investigated sufficiently before. This dynamometer can measure both twisting hold strength and torque at a time. Therefore, it can be applied to motion analysis at demonstrating muscle strength. Both development curve of the age group's average of the average hold strength of left and right hand { (LH⋅HS+RH⋅HS) /2} and the average twisting hold strength of left and right hand { (LF⋅HS+RF⋅HS) /2} showed the peak of development in man's thirties and in woman's twenties-thirties and then marked depreciation gradually with ageing. The average torque of forward twisting of left hand and that of right hand { (LF⋅T+RF⋅T) /2} showed the same tendency in respect of the peak of development too, but woman's curve showed the peak in twenties different from that in man and then didn't mark depreciation remarkably. From the analysis with respect to twisting motion by the subjects of right handedness, we have recognized that the twisting hold strength of right hand by the action of left or right forward twisting (LF·RH·HS, RF·RH·HS) is greater than that of left hand (LF·LH·HS, RF·LH·HS), the torque of forward twisting of left hand (LF·T) is greater than that of right hand (RF·T) and that the hand of back twisting supports the grip-torque dynamometer from the result of EMG. Therefore, we can understand that the stronger torque is generated by the motion of forward twisting of left hand which can support stronger than by that of right hand. But we have recognized too that the average hold strength and the average torque correlate to one another closely. Therefor, we can understand that it requires the stronger hold strength to generate the higher torque.

We report a case of dysphagia caused by compression of the esophagus by the nonaneurysmal tortuous descending aorta (dysphagia aortica). A 69-year-old woman was admitted suffering from dysphagia. Esophagoscopy showed esophageal stenosis caused by pulsatile and extramural compression. Esophagography and aortograms also showed that the nonaneurysmal tortuous descending aorta compressed the esophagus in an anteromedian direction. To avoid the esophageal ulcer and the aortoesophageal fistula, resection of the tortuous aorta and a Dacron graft replacement was performed. After operation compression of the esophagus was released and her complaint improved.

In order to elucidate effects of the exercise intensity on purine catabolism, we performed exhausitve exercise (Exh-ex), 80% VO₂max exercise (80%-ex) and 70% VO₂max exercise (70%-ex) test by a bicycle ergometer, and estimated the purine catabolism by the changes in blood ammonia, plasma oxypurines and urinary oxypurines in five healthy male subjects who were given allopurinol. The results were summarized as follows;
1) Plasma oxypurines concentrations (POP) increased gradually after exercise with each intensity. The order of their maximal levels and of cumulative areas under the curves of POP were exh-ex>80%-ex>70%-ex>control, respectively, and that of urinary excretions of oxypurines was exh-ex>80%-ex>70%-ex≥control.
2) Blood ammonia concentrations (BNH₃) increased sharply after exercise with each intensity. The order of their maximal levels was 80%-ex = exh-ex>70%-ex>control, and that of cumulative areas under the curves of BNH₃ was 80%-ex>exh-ex>70%-ex>control.
3) Blood lactate concentrations (BLA) increased sharply after exercise with each intensity. The order of their maximal levels and of cumulative areas under the curves of BLA were exh-ex =80%-ex>70%-ex>control, respectively.
These results suggest that the purine catabolism leading to uric acid production is activated by the physical exercise in the order of increasing intensities. The discrepancy between the increase in ammonia and those in oxypurines suggests that the increased purine catabolic pathway was mediated not only by AMP deamination but also by other factors.

Nosocomial infection management is one of the most important subjects in terms of risk management in a hospital. To achieve the nosocomial infection management appropriately, both public relations and information gathering are important. When it comes to publicity, it is desirable that information is offered quickly and efficiently and the personnel are able to access the information easily anytime and wherever they are. As for information gathering, it is also important to collect the information concerning the nosocomial infection promptly, and to tell it quickly to infection management persons including infection control team members. The infection control committee of our hospital has engaged in both publicity and information gathering by using the committee web site established in the LAN of the hospital since January 2004. The web site carries notifications, organization chart, list of committee members, various manuals, guidance of educational activities, infection management, etc. It is also used for questions and answers, and gathering information concerning nosocomial infection. The number of times the web site was accessed was about 200 every month, and was considerable at night and on holidays. This method of using the web site seems to be useful to promote nosocomial infection management.
Nosocomial Infections ; Infection as complication of medical care ; Information gathering ; Local Area Networks ; Hospitals

OBJECTIVES: To assess the vitamin D status in postmenopausal women with osteoporotic fractures, determine its concentration by fracture site at the clinical setting, and compare the proportion of vitamin D deficiency with that reported in literature. METHODS: The prospective study included 317 postmenopausal women with osteoporotic fractures who were treated consecutively from 2016 to 2018. After obtaining informed consent for participation in the seamless treatment of osteoporosis against fractures study, which is our initiative to prevent secondary osteoporotic fractures, we registered the patients, examined bone mineral density (BMD) at the unfractured femoral neck and lumbar spine, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentration, blood chemistry, and bone turnover markers. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 80.7 years. Moreover, 78% of patients of all fractures had 25(OH)D concentration < 20 ng/mL, whereas 12% of patients had 25(OH)D concentration ≥ 30 ng/mL 25(OH)D concentration in hip fractures was significantly lower than that in vertebral or distal radius fractures (P < 0.05). Multiple regression analysis revealed that 25(OH)D concentration is significantly associated with femoral neck BMD (β = 0.16; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.78–12.17, P = 0.03) and serum albumin concentration (β = 0.21; 95% CI, 0.62–2.96, P < 0.001) in patients with 25(OH)D concentration < 30 ng/mL. CONCLUSIONS The results of this study show that the proportion of postmenopausal women with osteoporotic fractures who had vitamin D deficiency was higher than the proportion in previous reports that examined general postmenopausal women (35.2%–52.0%).

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to explore the dosimetric difference between simultaneous integrated boost intensity-modulated radiotherapy (SIB-IMRT) and three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT), and the clinical outcomes of anal squamous cell carcinoma (ASCC) chemoradiotherapy featuring SIB-IMRT. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study included ten patients with ASCC who underwent chemoradiotherapy using SIB-IMRT with 5-fluorouracil and mitomycin C. SIB-IMRT delivered 54 Gy to each primary tumor plus metastatic lymph nodes and 45 Gy to regional lymph nodes, in 30 fractions. Four patients received additional boosts to the primary tumors and metastatic lymph nodes; the median total dose was 54 Gy (range, 54 to 60 Gy). We additionally created 3DCRT plans following the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 9811 protocol to allow dosimetric comparisons with SIB-IMRT. Locoregional control, overall survival, and toxicity were calculated for the clinical outcome evaluation. RESULTS: Compared to 3DCRT, SIB-IMRT significantly reduced doses to the external genitalia, bladder, and intestine, delivering the doses to target and elective nodal region. At a median follow-up time of 46 months, 3-year locoregional control and overall survival rates were 88.9% and 100%, respectively. Acute toxicities were treated conservatively. All patients completed radiotherapy with brief interruptions (range, 0 to 2 days). No patient experienced ≥grade 3 late toxicity during the follow-up period. CONCLUSION: The dosimetric advantages of SIB-IMRT appeared to reduce the toxicity of chemoradiotherapy for ASCC achieving high locoregional control in the extended period.
Anus Neoplasms ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* ; Chemoradiotherapy ; Epithelial Cells* ; Fluorouracil ; Follow-Up Studies ; Genitalia ; Humans ; Intestines ; Lymph Nodes ; Mitomycin ; Radiotherapy ; Radiotherapy Planning, Computer-Assisted ; Radiotherapy, Conformal ; Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated* ; Survival Rate ; Treatment Outcome ; Urinary Bladder

Objectives: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a risk factor for osteoporosis. Nevertheless, much remains unclear regarding the bone metabolism dynamics associated with COPD. The present study focuses on the associations between the COPD severity and serum bone metabolism biomarkers. Methods: We enrolled 40 patients who visited the orthopedics departments at our institutions and underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry between September 2015 and December 2017. Only male osteoporosis patients over 45 years of age were included, and 5 patients were excluded due to disease or use of internal medicines affecting bone metabolism. All subjects underwent lung function testing, spine radiography, and blood tests. We measured percent forced expiratory volume in 1 second (%FEV1), which reflects COPD severity, and we examined the relationships between %FEV1and serum levels of bone metabolism biomarkers. Results: All subjects were diagnosed with osteoporosis based on T-scores. %FEV1 correlated with body weight, body mass index (BMI), and Z-score/T-scores. %FEV1 moderately correlated with serum levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), procollagen type 1 N-terminal propeptide (P1NP), and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b in the partial correlation analysis adjusted for BMI or T-score in the lumbar vertebrae. We performed a hierarchical multiple regression analysis to identify that serum ALP and P1NP were the independent explanatory variables to %FEV1 independent of other factors. Conclusions The data suggest that the COPD severity in middle-aged and older men with osteoporosis associates with decreased bone formation. COPD patients may exhibit bone metabolism dynamics characterized by low bone turnover with osteogenesis dysfunction as COPD becomes severe.

Objectives: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a risk factor for osteoporosis. Nevertheless, much remains unclear regarding the bone metabolism dynamics associated with COPD. The present study focuses on the associations between the COPD severity and serum bone metabolism biomarkers. Methods: We enrolled 40 patients who visited the orthopedics departments at our institutions and underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry between September 2015 and December 2017. Only male osteoporosis patients over 45 years of age were included, and 5 patients were excluded due to disease or use of internal medicines affecting bone metabolism. All subjects underwent lung function testing, spine radiography, and blood tests. We measured percent forced expiratory volume in 1 second (%FEV1), which reflects COPD severity, and we examined the relationships between %FEV1and serum levels of bone metabolism biomarkers. Results: All subjects were diagnosed with osteoporosis based on T-scores. %FEV1 correlated with body weight, body mass index (BMI), and Z-score/T-scores. %FEV1 moderately correlated with serum levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), procollagen type 1 N-terminal propeptide (P1NP), and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b in the partial correlation analysis adjusted for BMI or T-score in the lumbar vertebrae. We performed a hierarchical multiple regression analysis to identify that serum ALP and P1NP were the independent explanatory variables to %FEV1 independent of other factors. Conclusions The data suggest that the COPD severity in middle-aged and older men with osteoporosis associates with decreased bone formation. COPD patients may exhibit bone metabolism dynamics characterized by low bone turnover with osteogenesis dysfunction as COPD becomes severe.

Background: The anti-programmed death 1 (PD-1) antibody has led to durable clinical responses in a wide variety of human tumors. We have previously developed the caninized anti-canine PD-1 antibody (ca-4F12-E6) and evaluated its therapeutic properties in dogs with advance-staged oral malignant melanoma (OMM), however, their therapeutic effects on other types of canine tumors remain unclear. Objective: The present clinical study was carried out to evaluate the safety profile and clinical efficacy of ca-4F12-E6 in dogs with advanced solid tumors except for OMM. Methods: Thirty-eight dogs with non-OMM solid tumors were enrolled prospectively and treated with ca-4F12-E6 at 3 mg/kg every 2 weeks of each 10-week treatment cycle. Adverse events (AEs) and treatment efficacy were graded based on the criteria established by the Veterinary Cooperative Oncology Group. Results: One dog was withdrawn, and thirty-seven dogs were evaluated for the safety and efficacy of ca-4F12-E6. Treatment-related AEs of any grade occurred in 13 out of 37 cases (35.1%).Two dogs with sterile nodular panniculitis and one with myasthenia gravis and hypothyroidism were suspected of immune-related AEs. In 30 out of 37 dogs that had target tumor lesions, the overall response and clinical benefit rates were 6.9% and 27.6%, respectively. The median progression-free survival and overall survival time were 70 days and 215 days, respectively. Conclusions The present study demonstrated that ca-4F12-E6 was well-tolerated in nonOMM dogs, with a small number of cases showing objective responses. This provides evidence supporting large-scale clinical trials of anti-PD-1 antibody therapy in dogs.

Methods: A total of 14 patients with unilateral radicular symptoms and five healthy subjects were subjected to simultaneous apparent T2 mapping and neurography with nerve-sheath signal increased with inked rest-tissue rapid acquisition of relaxation enhancement signaling (SHINKEI-Quant) using a 3-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging. The Visual Analog Scale (VAS) score for neck pain and upper arm pain was used to evaluate clinical symptoms. T2 relaxation times of the cervical dorsal root ganglia of the brachial plexus were measured bilaterally from C4 to C8 in patients with radicular symptoms and from C5 to C8 in healthy controls. The T2 ratio was calculated as the affected side to unaffected side. Results: When comparing nerve roots bilaterally at each spinal level, no significant differences in T2 relaxation times were found between patients and healthy subjects. However, T2 relaxation times of nerve roots in the patients with unilateral radicular symptoms were significantly prolonged on the involved side compared with the uninvolved side (p<0.05). The VAS score for upper arm pain was not significantly correlated with the T2 relaxation times, but was positively correlated with the T2 ratio. Conclusions In patients with cervical radiculopathy, the SHINKEI-Quant technique can be used to quantitatively evaluate the compressed cervical nerve roots. The VAS score for upper arm pain was positively correlated with the T2 ratio. This suggests that the SHINKEI-Quant is a potential tool for the diagnosis of cervical nerve entrapment.