Objective: Hypertriglyceridemia or elevated serum triglyceride (TG) is a leading risk factor for developing atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases.This clinical study was designed to test the potential of polyphenol-rich extract from Rosa rugosa petals (PE) for improving hypertriglyceridemia and other types of dyslipidemia. Methods: An open-label clinical study was conducted on 19 male and female adult subjects with elevated serum TG (120–399 mg/dL), who were intervened the study diet containing (in a daily dose) 200 mg of PE once daily for sss4 weeks.The serum levels of TG and cholesterols were measured at baseline and week-4.The efficacy was evaluated by comparing the measurements at these two timepoints. Results: A significant decrease (P < 0.05) in serum TG, as well as in serum total cholesterol and non HDL-cholesterol, and a marginally significant decrease (P = 0.070) in serum LDL-cholesterol were observed, while serum HDL-cholesterol was virtually not changed.The study diet was well tolerated without any untoward side effect. Conclusions: The PE-containing diet appears to have benefits in improving hypertriglyceridemia and hypercholesterolemia.

We report the initial results of thoracic endovascular repair using the Gore TAG device (TAG) used in treatment of thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAA), and evaluate initial outcome based on the Japan SCORE (JS) system. From August 2008 to July 2009, thoracic aortic endovascular repair (TEVAR) for TAA was applied in 27 cases (men/women, 22/5, 53-88 years old, mean age 70.5). Locations included the distal arch in 7 cases, proximal descending TAA (dTAA) in 12 cases and middle or distal dTAA in 8 cases. Deployment of a stent-graft (SG) was successful in 27 cases (100%) and complete thrombosis of the aneurysm or complete entry closure was achieved in 26 cases (96.3%). There was 1 type 2 endoleak (3.7%), 2 iliac arterial injuries (7.4%) and 2 cases of temporary hemodialysis (7.4%). There was no occurrence of paraplegia or hospital death. The 30-day mortality rate and major complication rate examined by the Japan SCORE (JS) system did not show any statistical differences between the TEVAR group and the open repair (OR) group, however the data were higher in the TEVAR group, although not statisfically in the OR group. The OR group had a high complication incidence in comparison with the TEVAR group. Based on evaluation by the JS system, the initial results suggest that TAG for the treatment of TAA is superior to conventional open surgery.

Between August 2008 and June 2012, 17 TEVAR procedures for thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAA) requiring Z2 coverage were performed at our institution. Patient age ranged from 46 to 82 years old (mean 69.4), 16 were male. Criteria for LSA revascularization at our institution are defined as either : 1) dominant left vertebral artery (VA), 2) absent or diminutive or occluded right VA, 3) no communication of bilateral VA, 4) bilateral carotid artery disease, 5) patent LIMA-coronary bypass, 6) if a long length of the thoracic aorta is covered. Devices utilized were Gore TAG (n=12) and TX2 (n=5). Deployment of the stent-graft (SG) was successful in 17 cases (100%) and complete thrombosis of the aneurysm or complete entry closure was achieved in 16 cases (94.1%). Axillo-axillar cross over bypass (Ax-Ax B) was performed in 5 cases (29.4%). There was no instance of cerebrospinal ischemia or hospital death and the mean follow-up was 22.9 month (range 5 to 46). One case was converted to open surgery due to secondary type 1 endoleak. There was no instance of Ax-Ax B graft occlusion or aneurysmal rupture. The initial and mid-term results of TEVAR requiring Z2 coverage were satisfactory, and we believe that our criteria for LSA revascularization played an important role in providing the satisfactory results.

We reporte the initial results of open stent-grafting (OSG) applied with a Matsui-Kitamura (MK) stent in the treatment of thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA). From August 2005 to March 2011, OSG for TAA was applied in 35 cases (male/female, 29/6, 58∼86 years old, mean age 71). During deep hypothermic circulatory arrest with antegrade selective cerebral perfusion, the stent graft was delivered through the transected proximal aortic arch, followed by arch replacement with a 4-branched prosthesis. Concomitant procedures included 1 coronary artery bypass graft, 1 mitral valve replacement and 2 pacemaker implantations. Operative mortality within 30 days was 5.7% (respiratory failure in 1 and ischemic enteritis in 1). There was 1 in-hospital death due to brain stem infarction. Perioperative morbidity included 2 (5.7%) stroke, 5 (14.3%) spinal cord injuries (paraplegia in 1, paraparesis in 1 and transient paraparesis in 3) , and 1 (2.9%) temporary hemodialysis. Ten patients (28.6%) were intubated for more than 72 h. There was no complication with the graft-related incident. These initial results suggested the OSG method applied with a MK stent is a useful surgical procedure for the treatment of TAA.

Objective : We examined the utility of distal perfusion (DP) in open stent grafting (OSG) for the treatment of thoracic aortic aneurysm. Methods : Fifty patients who underwent OSG were categorized into two groups (the Non-DP group and the DP group) based on the presence or absence of distal perfusion in OSG. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups with regard to patient characteristics. Results : There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups with regard to operation time, but, cardiopulmonary bypass time (178±22 min vs. 193±18 min ; p <0.01) and aortic cross clamp time (84±23 min vs. 106±19 min ; p<0.01) were significantly longer in the DP group. Lower-body circulatory arrest time (46±11 min vs. 20±5 min ; p<0.001) was significantly longer in the Non-DP group. Postoperative paraplegia and paraparesis occurred in one case each in the Non-DP group, whereas permanent spinal cord ischemia did not occur in the DP group. Postoperative intubation time (72.6±40.1 h vs. 40.1±34.7 h ; p<0.05) was significantly longer in the Non-DP group. There were two in-hospital deaths due to stroke and respiratory failure in the Non-DP group, and one in-hospital death due to respiratory failure in the DP group. The postoperative maximum value of BUN (38.5±15.6 mg/dl vs. 30.8±9.8 mg/dl ; p<0.05) and s-Cr (1.9±1.0 mg/dl vs. 1.3±0.4 mg/dl ; p<0.01) were significantly higher in the Non-DP group. Conclusion : DP in OSG was an effective method for prevention of spinal cord ischemia, and for protection of respiratory and renal function.

Recoarctation, systemic hypertension, aortic aneurysm and intracranial aneurysm are generally observed within a certain period after the surgical procedure for aortic coarctation, which is known as a systemic diseases caused by not only morphological abnormalities but also arterial functional abnormalities of artery. Here, we report a case who showed complications of recoarctation, hypertension and subarachnoid hemorrhage after surgery for aortic coarctation. A 17-year-old boy originally presented to our hospital with upper extremity systemic hypertension. Recoarctation after surgery for aortic coarctation was diagnosed in his childhood, following which hypertension was followed while he received continuous treatment with anti-hypertensive drugs. He was hospitalized with sudden headache and loss of consciousness. Since subarachnoid hemorrhage was diagnosed by computed tomography, clipping of intracranial aneurysms was performed. After the clipping procedure, he underwent percutaneous intravascular stenting angioplasty. However, the pressure gradient remained and sufficient dilatation was not obtained because of the hypoplastic anatomical distal aortic arch (from the left internal carotid artery to the site of recoarctation) due to the development of collateral circulation with rib notch. At age 21, extra-anatomical bypass (from the ascending aorta to the descending aorta) was performed because of persistent upper extremity systemic hypertension. However, systemic hypertension continued to require antihypertensive medication.

A 34-year-old woman had received a diagnosis of X-linked hypophosphatemic osteomalacia when she was born. As an adult she complained of general fatigue, palpitations dyspnea exertional and leg edema. Transthoracic echocardiography showed aortic stenosis and regurgitation with severe aortic valve calcification. Chest computed tomography revealed her ascending aorta to be circumferentially calcified. Surgery was performed through a median sternotomy via cardiopulmonary bypass, with perfusion from the right subclavian artery and the right femoral artery and drainage from the superior and the inferior venae cavae. A left ventricular venting cannula was inserted from the right superior pulmonary vein. When her bladder temperature had dropped to 28°C by central cooling, we stopped the perfusion from the right femoral artery and performed aortotomy. We examined the lumen and clamped the aorta at the usual site, while flushing with blood by femoral perfusion. Aortic valve calcification was observed to extend from the sinus of valsalva to the outflow tract of the left ventricle on the non-coronary cusp side. He was necessary to repair the aortic annulus due to a defect resulting from careful removal of the calcified valve. We then performed aortic valve replacement using a 19-mm Carpentier-Edwards perimount Magna. Her postoperative course was uneventful without any sign of neurological complications, and she was discharged 13 days after surgery. On pathological examination, localized ossification with calcification was observed in her aortic valve which seemed to be characteristic of X-linked hypophosphatemic osteomalacia.

To assess the changes in attitudes toward smoking after the smoking-prevention classes presented by Kumamoto Tobacco-Free Forum, this study administered a questionnaire survey to first-year junior high school students before and after a smoking-prevention class at a junior high school. The questionnaire that was used to pre and post comparison comprised thirteen items, ten from the Kano Test for Social Nicotine Dependence (KTSND-Youth) and three as follows: “I think I will be a smoker in the future,” “I think I will smoke about once,” and “What do you think of people around you who smoke tobacco?” The results of this pre- and post-class questionnaire indicate that attitudes toward seven items improved in a statistically significant way. These included four from KTSND-Youth: “Smokers cannot stop even if they want to,” “Smoking is adult-like and cool,” “Smoking is enjoys taste and a fragrance,” and “If it’s a place with an ashtray, it’s okay to smoke.” The smoking-prevention classes significantly decreased total KTSND-Youth scores. Furthermore, the analysis has clarified that the KTSND-Youth items: “Smoking is adult-like and cool” and “Doctor and school teachers say, ‘Tobacco is no good too much”, as well as the item “What do you think of people around you who smoke tobacco?” are significantly influencing factors for the item “I will be a smoker in the future.” These results indicate that the smoking-prevention classes presented by Kumamoto Tobacco-Free Forum were effective for decline in social nicotine dependence of the first-year students in junior high school.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare of Japan is planning a pooling system for multiple-choice questions (MCQs) for the national examination for medical practitioners. To clarify possible problems of such a system, a field study was performed by 10 medical schools in Japan using 90 MCQs from previous examinations. Nine hundred twenty-four 6th-year students participated in the field test. For each MCQ, the correct-response rates at the originating school and those obtained in the field test were significantly correlated. Thus, the correct-response rates to questions on the field test could be predicted from the rates at the originating schools. However, for each question the correct-response rate was significantly higher for students of the originating school than for students of other schools. In the national examination, care should be taken to prevent differences in scores on the basis of question sources.

OBJECTIVESTo analyze actual conditions of the quality of life (QOL) in junior high school students, we developed a questionnaire based on the PRECEDE-PROCEED model, and we conducted a survey by using this questionnaire.

METHODSWe conducted a workshop organized with 29 specialists on school health and community health to develop the questionnaire. The QOL outcome was assessed by the QOL Profile-Adolescent Version (QOLPAV). The subjects of the questionnaire surveys were 1600 general students in four junior high schools. To investigate a correlation between QOLPAV, behaviors and three enhancing factors, two different multiple regression models were constructed.

RESULTSThe question battery for QOLPAV was found to be a high value of Chronbach's α. Among present subjects, 16.5% were categorized as "problematic" or "very problematic" classified by QOLPAV scores. In the first multiple regression model, significantly high odds ratios were obtained between the QOLPAV and 4 questions for behaviors, such as "studying with high motivation" (OR 1.64), "getting along well with my friends" (2.72), "having things I am interested in" (1.70), and "making my own decisions" (1.80). In the second model, significantly high odds ratios were obtained commonly between the above 4 questions about behaviors and 2 questions on enabling factors, such as "easy to understand lessons" (1.32-1.71) and "speaking to friends easily" (1.30-3.22).

CONCLUSIONS1) We developed a questionnaire to analyze the actual condition of QOL in junior high school students with sufficient validity and availability. 2) Among the present subjects, 16.5% were found to be problematic QOLPAV, 3) Among the factors of behaviors, those representing positive willing and high coping ability with the elements of each school life contributed significantly to the QOLPAV. And among enhancing factors, "enabling factors" and "reinforcing factors" were stronger contributors to the behaviors strongly related to the QOLPAV than that of "predisposing factors".