The effects of insulin administration on the normal growth of mouse skeletal muscle and its effect on induction of muscle hypertrophy by tenotomy were investigated in this experiment.
1) The influence of insulin dosage on rat body weight was investigated.
The results of examining the influence of insulin dosage on body weight showed significant increases in body weight in the 8.0U/Kg dosage group and 16.0 U/Kg dosage group compared to the control group.
2) The influence of insulin dosage on rat blood glucose levels was investigated.
The blood glucose values of the 1.0 U/kg dosage group were significantly lower than in the control group. They were significantly lower in the 1.0 U/kg dosage group than in the other dosage groups. The positive utilization of glucose in the peripheral organization was suggested.
3) The effect of insulin dosage on skeletal muscle weight was tested.
ANOVA shows a significant difference in soleus muscle weight as the insulin dosage rose. Soleus muscle weight at the 1.0 U/kg dosage was significantly higher than in the other groups. By contrast, no significant differences in muscle weight were observed in the control group as the dose insulin increased. The weight of fast muscle was unaffected by the size of the insulin dosage.
4) The influence of insulin dosage on the compensatory muscle hypertrophy was examined.
The influence of insulin dosage to the compensatory muscle hypertrophy was examined after one week. A 75% increase in soleus muscle after tenotomy was observed in the control group. Although the plantaris muscle showed an average 30% increase, the difference was not significant. A tendency for the weight of soleus muscle and plantaris muscle to increase after tenotomy was observed in the 2.0 U/kg dosage group, but the increments were not significantly different. Effect of tenotomy was observed weight of the soleus from an average of 7.3% in the 16.0 U/kg dosage group, but the increment was not significant. On the other hand, plantaris muscle weight increased about 65% and the increment was significant.

Although there are a number of reported cases of increased cerebral blood flow during exercise, there are no reports on the relation between changes of blood flow during exercise and attentional function. The purpose of this study is to clarify the relation between changes of blood flow during exercise with AT intensity and attentional function, using near-infrared spectral analysis. The subjects were 10 healthy males. The research protocol was to conduct steady load exercise. We randomly conducted two invention trials: 1) an exercise/task trial in which a trail making test (TMT) was performed as an attentional assignment during steady load exercise, and 2) a rest/task trial in which TMT was performed during rest as a control. As a result, we observed the following: increase of oxy-Hb in the prefrontal cortex during AT exercise, the significant shortening of TMT during exercise from 69.1±10.2 seconds to63.2±7.2seconds, and, with further control, that the more oxy-Hb rises, the more TMT time is shortened. From these results, it is suggested that 10 minutes of exercise would improve attentional function, and furthermore, there is a possibility that increased cerebral blood flow may be involved with the improvement of attentional function.

The patient was a 49-year-old woman. She developed retroperitonitis and retroperitoneal emphysema due to iatrogenic duodenal perforation. We inserted a nasogastric tube into her stomach in order to decompress the gastrointestinal tract, and cefoperazone and proton pump inhibitors were administered intravenously. Her symptoms of retroperitonitis were then reduced. However, she developed enteritis suspected due to MRSA infection complicated by acute respiratory distress syndrome, acute renal failure and shock. We administered vancomycin via nasogastric tube, but her symptoms did not improve, so we added shojokito. She relieved her bowels after the administration of shojokito, and an antipyretic tendency was observed. Her breathing status recovered to normal, her blood pressure was stable, and her general condition gradually improved.
In recent years, we have not had many opportunities to perform Kampo treatment for severe infection cases needing hospitalization, but Kampo application has the potential to enhance the efficacy of infection treatments. Thus we advocate the active carrying out of Kampo treatment for patients with intestinal infection.

Kyokatsushoshitsuto is a Kampo formulation used against cervix pain so severe that the neck cannot be turned. Of six patients we treated with this formula, it was effective in three cases but ineffective in the remaining three. From the viewpoint of traditional Chinese medicine (Kampo) regarding the in/effectiveness of this formula : in effective cases, palpitations in the area of the navel and tooth marks on the tongue are seen in patients in a weak state. As for subjective symptoms : in effective cases, “the waist area around the body sometimes feels cold”, “air conditioning is disliked”, and “an electric blanket etc. is needed in winter” were also indicative signs. On the other hand, symptoms such as “the skin becomes dry”, “water may accumulate in a joint”, and “symptoms of clicking/pain in the knee and having difficulty sitting straight” were not seen. In total, these may serve as useful indications for the application of kyokatsushoshitsuto, especially when palpitations in the navel area are considered a helpful new Kampo finding.

We report two cases of inchinkoto treatment for obstructive jaundice via autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP). Case 1 : A 38-year-old male. After completion of treatment for Mikulicz disease, obstructive jaundice developed. A diagnosis of AIP was based on a high IgG 4 blood level and image views. T-Bil stayed above 20 mg/dl and there was no improvement by oral administration of prednisolone (PSL), ursodeoxycholic acid, or bilirubin adsorption therapy. Upon inchinkoto administration, T-Bil promptly fell to 3 mg/dL. Case 2 : A 77-year-old male. He suffered from itching and constipation, and blood data showed a pattern of obstructive jaundice. Image views suggested AIP, but a duodenal papillary biopsy could not provide a definitive diagnosis. Inchinkoto was administered, and the itching and constipation had mostly disappeared within 1 week. However, these symptoms recurred after one month. A definitive diagnosis of AIP was then reached based on a pancreas biopsy, and a PSL regimen was initiated. From these two cases, we consider that inchinkoto is useful for improving the symptoms of obstructive jaundice induced by AIP.