1.Trials of Kampo Therapy in the Treatment of Central Serous Chorioretinopathy.
Kampo Medicine 1997;47(5):837-843
Using Oriental medical pathology, the author attempted to define the cause of macular subretinal fluid of central serous chorioretinopathy, which is regarded as a psychosomatic disease of unknown etiology in Western medicine. The patients participating in this study were 19 males and 11 females ranging in age from 31 to 53 who had sought treatment at the author's clinic for this disease.
The patients received only Kampo formulas, which were selected on the basis of Kampo diagnostics. The course of the disease was observed by testing visual acuity, central visual fields or fluorescein angiography. The results were as follows: the types of stress which were considered to be the cause of the disease were visual in 8 cases, mental in 14 cases, physical in 3 cases and unknown in 5 cases. Types of signs and symptoms observed were those associated with the liver meridian in 22 cases, the spleen meridian in 15 cases, the kidney meridian in 8 cases, and the heart meridian in 1 case. In 9 of these cases, the liver meridian had affected the spleen meridian.
Kampo formulas such as Saikokeishi-to, Gorei-san, Rokumi-gan and Keishibukuryo-gan were frequently administered to 23 cases effectively treated within one month. Consierding the results of Kampo diagnosis and treatment, the author concluded that the macular edema associated with this disease may be ralated to the fact that visual or mental stress affects the liver meridian and seocondary impairs the spleen meridian. It is also associated with weakness of the kidney meridian and to inborn weakness of the spleen meridian.
2.Effects of Lapse of Time and Temperature After Collection of Urine Specimens on Urinalysis
Kazuhiko NAKAYA ; Noriko KASHIWAKURA ; Satoru KUROKI ; Tadashi ENDO ; Akihiro SUGITA
Journal of the Japanese Association of Rural Medicine 2016;64(5):789-797
Urine tests, which are performed routinely as specimens can be collected without inflicting pain on patients at all, give plenty of information about health conditions quickly thanks to the recent advances in techniques for urinalysis. Nonetheless, the constituents of urine are liable to change, and so prompt examination is necessary. In the case of inpatients, it sometimes happens that examinations begin several hours after specimen collection. Behind this, there is no time frame set for collecting urine specimens which makes it difficult to deliver specimens to the examination room without delay. In this study, we investigated longitudinal changes in the contents of urine specimens voided by inpatients under some specific conditions. Furthermore, we examined the effects of those intestinal bacteria (E.coli, Proteus), which are often detected in urine, on glycosuria, and the changes in nitrite reduction reaction. Our findings showed that urine specimens containing such physiological and pathological factors as to influence urine tests were particularly subject to change with the passage of time. Therefore, when there is a need to preserve the specimens, chilled storage using a lidded container is required. It was slso found that between E -coli and Proteus in the urine a considerable difference was noted in time-dependent change of glycolysis and nitrite reduction reaction.
3.Two Patients with Ophthalmic Symptoms due to Post Herpetic Infection Dramatically Improved with Chotosan
Satoru FUKUDA ; Takashi NAMBU ; Hidenori TAKAHASHI ; Kanako KUROKI ; Hiroshi NISHIYAMA ; Tadamichi MITSUMA
Kampo Medicine 2010;61(7):912-916
We successfully treated 2 patients with ophthalmic symptoms due to post herpetic infection using chotosan. Case1was a 78-year-old woman who had been suffering from ophthalmic symptoms such as foreign body sensation and irritation pain due to post herpetic infection for almost 20 years, and had a history of hypertension. We treated her with stellate ganglion block every week and orally administered keishikajutsubuto, amitriptyline, and later mexiletine. Initially, stellate ganglion block was very effective, but its effect gradually decreased over about one month. Considering the same action of stellate ganglion block and chotosan, both of which might increase intracranial blood flow, we administered chotosan instead of keishikajutsubuto. Her ophthalmic symptoms subsided for 5 days, and had completely disappeared almost two and half months after initiating chotosan. Case 2 was a 65-year-old man who had also complained of foreign body sensation due to post herpetic infection for 11 months. He also had a history of hypertension. Initial stellate ganglion block was also effective for relieving his symptom, but the effect was transient as in Case 1. Taking into consideration of our experience in Case 1,we administered chotosan. His foreign body sensation gradually subsided for 2 weeks, and had almost disappeared 2 months after initiating chotosan. Our experiences suggest that chotosan may be an optimal formulation for the patients suffering from ophthalmic disorders due to post herpetic inflammation and hypertension.