Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the incidence and management of venous ruptures after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) for dysfunctional arteriovenous (AV) access. Materials and Methods: From January 1998 to December 2015, 13506 PTA, mechanical thrombectomy, and thrombolysis procedures were performed in 6732 patients. The venous rupture rate following PTA was obtained, and access circuit primary patency (ACPP) was compared according to the etiology (PTA, thrombotic occlusion, and treatment type) of the venous rupture present. Results: Venous rupture developed in 604 of the 13506 procedures. Venous ruptures were more frequent in female, AV graft cases, and in cases accompanied by thrombosis. Balloon tamponade was performed in 604 rupture cases, and stents were deployed in 119 cases where contrast extravasation and flow stasis persisted. ACPP was significantly better in the non-ruptured AV access circuits than in the ruptured group. However, AV access type and thrombosis was not associated with primary patency. In ruptured cases, ACPP is 8.4 months for prolonged balloon tamponade and 11.2 months for bare-metal stent insertion, showing statistically significant difference. Conclusion Balloon tamponade and bare-metal stent placement are effective treatment for PTA-induced venous ruptures. In particular, stent placement showed a similar ACPP to that of non-ruptured AV access circuits.

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the incidence and management of venous ruptures after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) for dysfunctional arteriovenous (AV) access. Materials and Methods: From January 1998 to December 2015, 13506 PTA, mechanical thrombectomy, and thrombolysis procedures were performed in 6732 patients. The venous rupture rate following PTA was obtained, and access circuit primary patency (ACPP) was compared according to the etiology (PTA, thrombotic occlusion, and treatment type) of the venous rupture present. Results: Venous rupture developed in 604 of the 13506 procedures. Venous ruptures were more frequent in female, AV graft cases, and in cases accompanied by thrombosis. Balloon tamponade was performed in 604 rupture cases, and stents were deployed in 119 cases where contrast extravasation and flow stasis persisted. ACPP was significantly better in the non-ruptured AV access circuits than in the ruptured group. However, AV access type and thrombosis was not associated with primary patency. In ruptured cases, ACPP is 8.4 months for prolonged balloon tamponade and 11.2 months for bare-metal stent insertion, showing statistically significant difference. Conclusion Balloon tamponade and bare-metal stent placement are effective treatment for PTA-induced venous ruptures. In particular, stent placement showed a similar ACPP to that of non-ruptured AV access circuits.

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the incidence and management of venous ruptures after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) for dysfunctional arteriovenous (AV) access. Materials and Methods: From January 1998 to December 2015, 13506 PTA, mechanical thrombectomy, and thrombolysis procedures were performed in 6732 patients. The venous rupture rate following PTA was obtained, and access circuit primary patency (ACPP) was compared according to the etiology (PTA, thrombotic occlusion, and treatment type) of the venous rupture present. Results: Venous rupture developed in 604 of the 13506 procedures. Venous ruptures were more frequent in female, AV graft cases, and in cases accompanied by thrombosis. Balloon tamponade was performed in 604 rupture cases, and stents were deployed in 119 cases where contrast extravasation and flow stasis persisted. ACPP was significantly better in the non-ruptured AV access circuits than in the ruptured group. However, AV access type and thrombosis was not associated with primary patency. In ruptured cases, ACPP is 8.4 months for prolonged balloon tamponade and 11.2 months for bare-metal stent insertion, showing statistically significant difference. Conclusion Balloon tamponade and bare-metal stent placement are effective treatment for PTA-induced venous ruptures. In particular, stent placement showed a similar ACPP to that of non-ruptured AV access circuits.

Objective: 177 Lutetium [Lu] Ludotadipep is a novel prostate-specific membrane antigen targeting therapeutic agent with an albumin motif added to increase uptake in the tumors. We assessed the biodistribution and dosimetry of [ 177 Lu]Ludotadipep in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). Materials and Methods: Data from 25 patients (median age, 73 years; range, 60–90) with mCRPC from a phase I study with activity escalation design of single administration of [ 177 Lu]Ludotadipep (1.85, 2.78, 3.70, 4.63, and 5.55 GBq) were assessed. Activity in the salivary glands, lungs, liver, kidneys, and spleen was estimated from whole-body scan and abdominal SPECT/CT images acquired at 2, 24, 48, 72, and 168 h after administration of [ 177 Lu]Ludotadipep. Red marrow activity was calculated from blood samples obtained at 3, 10, 30, 60, and 180 min, and at 24, 48, and 72 h after administration. Organand tumor-based absorbed dose calculations were performed using IDAC-Dose 2.1. Results: Absorbed dose coefficient (mean ± standard deviation) of normal organs was 1.17 ± 0.81 Gy/GBq for salivary glands, 0.05 ± 0.02 Gy/GBq for lungs, 0.14 ± 0.06 Gy/GBq for liver, 0.77 ± 0.28 Gy/GBq for kidneys, 0.12 ± 0.06 Gy/GBq for spleen, and 0.07 ± 0.02 Gy/GBq for red marrow. The absorbed dose coefficient of the tumors was 10.43 ± 7.77 Gy/GBq. Conclusion [ 177 Lu]Ludotadipep is expected to be safe at the dose of 3.7 GBq times 6 cycles planned for a phase II clinical trial with kidneys and bone marrow being the critical organs, and shows a high tumor absorbed dose.

Background: This prospective randomized controlled study aimed to determine the effects of abdominal massage on constipation management in elderly patients with hip fractures. Methods: From August 2017 to December 2018, patients aged above 65 years with hip fractures (n = 88) were randomly assigned to a massage group that received a bowel massage (n = 48) or a control group that did not receive a bowel massage (n = 40). Patients in the bowel massage group received a bowel massage from a trained caregiver after breakfast at approximately 9:00 AM for an hour. On admission, 5 days after surgery, and on the day of discharge, the patient’s normal and actual defecation pattern, stool consistency, and any problems with defecation were assessed through a structured interview. The questionnaire comprising the Bristol Stool Scale, patient assessment of constipation, time to defecation, medication for defecations, failure to defecate, cause of admission, admission period, and date of surgery were recorded. Statistical analyses were performed 5 days after surgery and on the day of discharge. Results: The mean age of the study cohort was 81.4 years (range, 65–99 years). The number of constipation remedies was significantly lower in the massage group than in the control group on postoperative day (POD) 5 and at discharge (9 vs. 15, p = 0.049 and 6 vs. 11, p = 0.039, respectively). The number of defecation failures was significantly lower in the massage group than in the control group (10 vs. 17, p = 0.028) on POD 5. However, the number of defecation failures at discharge was not significantly different between the two groups ( p = 0.131). The development of postoperative ileus ( p = 0.271) and length of hospital stay ( p = 0.576) were not different between the groups. Conclusions The number of constipation remedies was significantly lower in the massage group than in the control group on POD 5 and discharge, and the number of defecation failures was significantly lower in the massage group than in the control group on POD 5. Therefore, abdominal massage may be considered as an independent nursing initiative for constipation management.

Despite the various medications used in clinics, the efforts to develop more effective treatments for depression continue to increase in the past decades mainly because of the treatment-resistant population, and the testing of several hypotheses- and target-based treatments. Undesirable side effects and unresponsiveness to current medications fuel the drive to solve this top global health problem. In this study, we focused on neuroinflammatory response-mediated depression which represents a cluster of depression etiology both in animal models and humans. Several meta-analyses reported that proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin 6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were increased in major depressive disorder patients. Inflammatory mediators implicated in depression include type-I interferon and inflammasome pathways. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms of neuroinflammatory cascades underlying the pathophysiology of depression, we introduced hycanthone, an antischistosomal drug, to check whether it can counteract depressive-like behaviors in vivo and normalize the inflammation-induced changes in vitro. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment increased proinflammatory cytokine expression in the murine microglial cells as well as the stimulation of type I interferon-related pathways that are directly or indirectly regulated by Janus kinase-signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK-STAT) activation. Hycanthone treatment attenuated those changes possibly by inhibiting the JAK-STAT pathway and inflammasome activation. Hycanthone also ameliorated depressive-like behaviors by LPS. Taken together, we suggest that the inhibitory action of hycanthone against the interferon pathway leading to attenuation of depressive-like behaviors can be a novel therapeutic mechanism for treating depression.

Colonoscopic polypectomy is effective in decreasing the incidence and mortality of colorectal cancer (CRC). Premalignant polyps discovered during colonoscopy are associated with the risk of metachronous advanced neoplasia. Postpolypectomy surveillance is the most important method for managing advanced metachronous neoplasia. A more efficient and evidence-based guideline for postpolypectomy surveillance is required because of the limited medical resources and concerns regarding colonoscopy complications. In these consensus guidelines, an analytic approach was used to address all reliable evidence to interpret the predictors of CRC or advanced neoplasia during surveillance colonoscopy. The key recommendations state that the high-risk findings for metachronous CRC following polypectomy are as follows: adenoma ≥10 mm in size; 3 to 5 (or more) adenomas; tubulovillous or villous adenoma; adenoma containing high-grade dysplasia; traditional serrated adenoma; sessile serrated lesion containing any grade of dysplasia; serrated polyp of at least 10 mm in size; and 3 to 5 (or more) sessile serrated lesions. More studies are needed to fully comprehend the patients who are most likely to benefit from surveillance colonoscopy and the ideal surveillance interval to prevent metachronous CRC.

Clinicians should pay close attention to the potential risk of coronary vasospasm, even cardiac arrest, after sugammadex administration.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the impact of baseline values and temporal changes in body composition parameters, including skeletal muscle index (SMI) and visceral adipose tissue area (VAT), measured using serial computed tomography (CT) imaging on the prognosis of operable breast cancers in Asian patients. Materials and Methods: This study retrospectively included 627 Asian female (mean age ± standard deviation [SD], 53.6 ± 8.3 years) who underwent surgery for stage I–III breast cancer between January 2011 and September 2012. Body composition parameters, including SMI and VAT, were semi-automatically calculated on baseline abdominal CT at the time of diagnosis and follow-up CT for post-treatment surveillance. Serial changes in SMI and VAT were calculated as the delta values. Multivariable Cox regression analysis was used to evaluate the association of baseline and delta SMI and VAT values with disease-free survival. Results: Among 627 patients, 56 patients (9.2%) had breast cancer recurrence after a median of 40.5 months. The mean value ± SD of the baseline SMI and baseline VAT were 43.7 ± 5.8 cm2 /m2 and 72.0 ± 46.0 cm2 , respectively. The mean value of the delta SMI was -0.9 cm2 /m2 and the delta VAT was 0.5 cm2 . The baseline SMI and VAT were not significantly associated with disease-free survival (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 0.983; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.937–1.031; p = 0.475 and adjusted HR, 1.001; 95% CI, 0.995–1.006; p = 0.751, respectively). The delta SMI and VAT were also not significantly associated with disease-free survival (adjusted HR, 0.894; 95% CI, 0.766–1.043; p = 0.155 and adjusted HR, 1.001; 95% CI, 0.989–1.014; p = 0.848, respectively). Conclusion Our study revealed that baseline and early temporal changes in SMI and VAT were not independent prognostic factors regarding disease-free survival in Asian patients undergoing surgery for breast cancer.

Purpose: We assessed prenatal detection rates of congenital heart disease (CHD) and associations between maternal serum biomarkers and non-chromosomal CHD in singleton pregnancies. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted as a secondary analysis of data obtained during a multicenter prospective cohort study that investigated the cost-effectiveness of prenatal testing for fetal aneuploidy. We analyzed the prenatal detection rate and accuracy for CHD screening via ultrasound during the second trimester, as well as associations between serum biomarkers and CHDs, in singleton newborns without chromosomal abnormalities. Results: Among 6715 women, 142 (2.1%) newborns were born with CHDs, of which 67 (1.0%) newborns had major CHDs. The prenatal detection rate for all CHDs and major CHDs were 34.5% and 58.2%, respectively. After excluding isolated ventricular septal defects, the detection rate for critical CHDs was 85.9%. Women with low pregnancy-associated plasma protein A (PAPP-A) (<0.4 multiples of the median, MOM) face increased risks of non-chromosomal CHDs [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 2.76; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.36–5.13] and major CHDs (aOR 7.30; 95% CI 3.18–15.59), compared to those without CHDs. A higher inhibin A level (≥2.5 MOM; aOR 4.84; 95% CI 1.42–12.46) was associated with non-chromosomal major CHDs. Conclusion Ultrasonography performed during the second trimester by obstetricians detected over 85% of critical CHDs. Low maternal serum PAPP-A or high inhibin-A was associated with non-chromosomal CHDs. These results may contribute to an improvement in prenatal diagnosis of CHDs.