It has been reported that Choto-san (diao teng san) is effective for the treatment of patients suffering from hypertension. Narrowing of the retinal arterioles is one of the important findings in hypertension.
The authors examined the pharmacological effects of Choto-san on the blood pressure and narrowing of the retinal arterioles in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and strokeprone SHR (SHRSP).
SHR and SHRSP rats (nine treatment cases and five control cases) were used. 200mg/kg/day of Choto-san was administered orally to the SHR and SHRSP for 12 weeks. After the 12 weeks of administration, the blood pressure was measured by the tailcuff method. Narrowing of the retinal arterioles was measured by the percentage ratio of the artery to vein caliber.
After three months of administration of Choto-san, the blood pressure of the SHR and SHRSP was shown to be significantly lower than that of the control. The percentage ratio of the artery to vein caliber in the treatment group was shown to be significantly higher than that of the control group SHR and SHRSP.
These findings suggest that Choto-san may lower the blood pressure and inhibit narrowing of the retinal arterioles in SHR and SHRSP.

We encountered a case of hypercobalaminemia induced by oral intake of an energy drink after total gastrectomy. The patient was referred to our hospital due to findings suspicious for gastric cancer on screening. A 20 mm type 0-IIc lesion was detected in the gastric subcardia on esophagogastroduodenoscopy. Total gastrectomy followed by Roux-en-Y reconstruction was performed. He was discharged without complications. His basal serum vitamin B₁₂ level was initially maintained with monthly intramuscular injections of vitamin B₁₂. After 9 months, his serum vitamin B₁₂ level suddenly increased up to 36-fold higher than the normal range and persisted there for one year without vitamin B₁₂ injections. The patient ultimately reported consuming half a bottle of an energy drink each day during this time period. This case demonstrates the risk of unexpected hypervitaminemia resulting from self-administration of nutritional supplements.

Coronary artery bypass surgery and abdominal aortic aneurysm repair were performed simultaneously during cardiopulmonary bypass in two patients with severe left ventricular dysfunction. Both patients underwent coronary artery bypass surgery first, followed by abdominal aortic aneurysm repair during cardiopulmonary bypass. Combined surgery is reasonable for patients with combined coronary artery disease and abdominal aortic aneurysm. Aortic aneurysm repair during cardiopulmonary bypass for patients with severe left ventricular dysfunction also appears safe and effective.

This study was designed to evaluate the late changes of coronary bypass grafts in 60 patients who had undergone coronary bypass surgery and postoperative angiography in the period from 1994 to 1999. Angiography was performed at mean intervals of 84 months and a total of 134 grafts and 162 anastomoses were visualized. The Left internal thoracic artery and saphenous vein had a patency of 85% and 82%, there was not statistically significant. In this series, late graft function did not relate to the site of implantation, that was mainly due to excellent results of saphenous vein grafts. With increasing proximal stenosis severity (under 75% versus over 90%), there was an increase in patency rates and this relationship was statistically significant (p=0.0005). That was why about 20% of the grafts to moderately stenotic target vessels had occluded within 1 month after surgery. Ten patients among these 60 had cardiac symptoms, 6 were due to graft failure and the other 4 were due to new lesions in the right coronary artery. In the other 12 patients new coronary artery lesions without cardiac symptoms had been detected. Periodic coronary examinations should be recommended for the patients after surgery, regardless of the absence of symptoms.

Objective: The overproduction of reactive oxygen species leads to oxidative stress, which is related to lifestyle-related disease and cancer. Although antioxidants are considered as one of the countermeasures to oxidative stress, it is necessary to develop the assessment methodology for the antioxidant capacity which is closer to the inner body conditions. In this study, we examined antioxidant actions of plant extracts by using newly-developed neutrophil activity measurement system.
Method: Lemon verbena, Green tea, Camellia japonica and Antiallerge^® were used as plant extracts, and were diluted to medium in wide-range concentrations. Each solution was added on modified Mebiol Gel^® (hydrogel), and the mixture of blood and luminol were set onto the hydrogel in each tube. The amount of reactive oxygen species were measured by luminol-dependent chemiluminescence, whereas the cell count in the hydrogel was quantified as migratory activity of neutrophils.
Result: Lemon verbena and Green tea significantly inhibited reactive oxygen species in a concentration-dependent manner, whereas Camellia japonica and Antiallerge^® did not. The migratory activity of neutrophils was not affected by those plant extracts. Also, damaged cells were not detected.
Conclusion: It was suggested that Lemon verbena and Green tea scavenged reactive oxygen species without causing cell death of neutrophils. This new method for measuring neutrophil activities can be applied not only for assessing the status of inflammation and oxidative stress but also as the screening system for predicting the effectiveness of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory substances.

Cesarean Section ; Female ; Humans ; Placenta Accreta ; Placenta Previa ; Pregnancy

PURPOSE: The neonatal mortality rate in Japan has currently been at the lowest level in the world. However, it is unclear whether there are still some potentially preventable neonatal deaths. We, therefore, aimed to examine the backgrounds of neonatal death and the possibilities of prevention in a region of Japan. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a population-based study of neonatal death in Shiga Prefecture of Japan. RESULTS: The 103 neonatal deaths in our prefecture between 2007 and 2011 were included. After reviewing by a peer-review team, we classified the backgrounds of these neonatal deaths and analyzed end-of-life care approaches associated with prenatal diagnosis. Furthermore, we evaluated the possibilities of preventable neonatal death, suggesting specific recommendations for its prevention. We analyzed 102 (99%) of the neonatal deaths. Congenital malformations and extreme prematurity were the first and the second most common causes of death, respectively. More than half of the congenital abnormalities (59%) including malformations and chromosome abnormality had been diagnosed before births. We had 22 neonates with non-intensive care including eighteen cases with congenital abnormality and four with extreme prematurity. Twenty three cases were judged to have had some possibility of prevention with one having had a strong possibility of prevention. Among specific recommendations of preventable neonatal death, more than half of them were for obstetricians. CONCLUSION: There is room to reduce neonatal deaths in Japan. Prevention of neonatal death requires grater prenatal care by obstetricians before birth rather than improved neonatal care by neonatologists after birth.
Cause of Death ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; *Infant Mortality ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Japan/epidemiology ; Male ; *Perinatal Death ; Perinatal Mortality ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Complications/epidemiology/*etiology

Background/Aims: We retrospectively analyzed Crohn’s disease (CD) patients with small intestinal strictures who underwent single-balloon enteroscopy (SBE) to ascertain whether prototype SBEs with a passive bending mechanism and high force transmission insertion tube had better insertability in the small intestine than a conventional SBE. Methods: Among 253 CD patients who underwent SBE, we identified 94 CD patients who had undergone attempted endoscopic balloon dilatation (EBD) for small intestinal stenosis for inclusion in this study. We analyzed whether the type of scope used for their initial procedure affected the cumulative surgery-free rate. For the insertability analysis, patients who underwent SBE at least twice were divided into 3 groups according to the type of scope used: conventional SBE only, prototype SBE only, and both conventional and prototype SBEs. For each group, depth of insertion, procedure time, and number of EBDs were compared in the same patient at different time points. Results: The success rate of EBD was 88.3%. The 5- and 10-year cumulative surgery-free rate was 75.7% and 72.8%, respectively. Cox regression analysis indicated that the factors contributing to surgery were long stricture (≥2 cm), EBD failure, and elevated Crohn’s Disease Activity Index, but not the type of scope used for EBD. The prototype SBEs significantly improved the depth of insertion (P=0.03, Wilcoxon’s signed-rank test). Conclusions In CD patients with small intestinal stenosis, the prototype SBEs with a passive bending mechanism and high force transmission insertion tube did not improve long-term EBD outcome but did improve deep insertability. (Clinical Trial Registration No. UMIN000037102)

BACKGROUND/AIMS: There are few prospective studies on cold forceps polypectomy (CFP) using jumbo cup forceps. Therefore, we examined patients with diminutive polyps (5 mm or smaller) treated with CFP using jumbo cup forceps to achieve an adenoma-free colon and also assessed the safety of the procedure and the recurrence rate of missed or residual polyp after CFP by performing follow-up colonoscopy 1 year later. METHODS: We included patients with up to 5 adenomas removed at initial colonoscopy and analyzed data from a total of 361 patients with 573 adenomas. One-year follow-up colonoscopy was performed in 165 patients, at which 251 lesions were confirmed. RESULTS: The one-bite resection rate with CFP was highest for lesions 3 mm or smaller and decreased significantly with increasing lesion size. Post-procedural hemorrhage was observed in 1 of 573 lesions (0.17%). No perforation was noted. The definite recurrence rate was 0.8% (2/251 lesions). The probable recurrence rate, which was defined as recurrence in the same colorectal segment, was 17%. Adenoma-free colon was achieved in 55% of patients at initial resection. Multivariate analysis revealed that achievement of an adenoma-free colon was significantly associated with number of adenomas and years of endoscopic experience. CONCLUSIONS: CFP using jumbo biopsy forceps was safe and showed a high one-bite resection rate for diminutive lesions of 3 mm or smaller. The low definite recurrence rate confirms the reliability of CFP using jumbo biopsy forceps. Number of adenomas and years of endoscopic experience were key factors in achieving an adenoma-free colon.
Adenoma ; Biopsy ; Colon ; Colonoscopy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Multivariate Analysis ; Polyps ; Prospective Studies ; Recurrence ; Surgical Instruments