STUDY DESIGN: Case series. PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to describe translaminar microendoscopic herniotomy (TL-MEH) for cranially migrated lumbar disc herniations encroaching on the exiting nerve root in the preforaminal and foraminal zones and to report preliminary results of the procedure. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: Conventional interlaminar approaches for preforaminal and foraminal lumbar disc herniations result in extensive removal of the lamina and facet joint to remove disc fragments safely. More destructive approaches increase the risk of postoperative segmental instability. METHODS: TL-MEH is a minimally invasive procedure for herniotomy via the translaminar approach using a microendoscopic technique. TL-MEH was performed in seven patients with a cranially migrated lumbar disc herniation encroaching on the exiting nerve root. The disc fragments were located in the preforaminal zone in four patients, and in the preforaminal and foraminal zones in three. RESULTS: All patients experienced immediate relief from symptoms after surgery and satisfactory results at the final follow-up. Surgical complications, such as a dural tear, nerve injury, and surgical site infection, were not investigated. CONCLUSIONS: TL-MEH seemed to be an effective and safe alternative minimally invasive surgical option for patients with a cranially migrated lumbar disc herniation encroaching the exiting nerve root in the preforaminal and foraminal zones.
Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Zygapophyseal Joint

Hereditary multiple exostoses (HME) is a benign hereditary disorder characterized by multiple osteochondromas. Osteochondroma appears occasionally in the spinal column as a part of HME. A 37-year-old man presented with a history of HME and cervical compressive myelopathy caused by intraspinal osteochondroma arising from the lamina of the C5 and disc herniation at the C5-6. He was treated by open-door laminoplasty at the C5 and C6 with excision of the tumor. The neurological symptoms were immediately relieved after surgery. Magnetic resonance images demonstrated a sufficient decompression of the spinal cord with a spontaneous regression of the herniated disc at one year after surgery. There was no recurrence of the tumor and no appearance of kyphosis and segmental instability of the cervical spine on postoperative imaging studies for three years after surgery. The patient could be successfully treated by laminoplasty with excision of the tumor and without removal of the herniated disc.
Adult ; Decompression ; Exostoses, Multiple Hereditary* ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc Displacement ; Kyphosis ; Osteochondroma* ; Recurrence ; Spinal Cord ; Spinal Cord Compression ; Spinal Cord Diseases* ; Spine

This report introduces a percutaneous transpedicular interbody fusion (PTPIF) technique in posterior stabilization using percutaneous pedicle screws (PPSs). An 81-year-old man presented with pseudoarthrosis following pyogenic spondylitis 15 months before. Although no relapse of infection was found, he complained of obstinate low back pain and mild neurological symptoms. Radiological evaluations showed a pseudoarthrosis following pyogenic spondylitis at T11–12. Posterior stabilization using PPSs from Th9 to L2 and concomitant PTPIF using autologous iliac bone graft at T11–12 were performed. Low back pain and neurological symptoms were immediately improved after surgery. A solid interbody fusion at T11–12 was completed 9 months after surgery. The patient had no restriction of daily activity and could play golf at one year after surgery. PTPIF might be a useful option for perform segmental fusion in posterior stabilization using PPSs.
Aged, 80 and over ; Golf ; Humans ; Low Back Pain ; Pseudarthrosis* ; Recurrence ; Spinal Fusion ; Spondylitis* ; Transplants

STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective comparative study. PURPOSE: To clarify the risk factors related to the development of postoperative C5 palsy through radiological studies after cervical double-door laminoplasty (DDL). OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: Although postoperative C5 palsy is generally considered to be the result of damage to the nerve root or segmental spinal cord, the associated pathology remains controversial. METHODS: A consecutive case series of 47 patients with cervical spondylotic myelopathy treated by DDL at our institution between April 2008 and April 2015 were reviewed. Postoperative C5 palsy occurred in 5 of 47 cases after DDL. We investigated 9 radiologic factors that have been reported to be risk factors for C5 palsy in various studies, and statistically examined these between the two groups of palsy and the non-palsy patients. RESULTS: We found a significant difference between patients with and without postoperative C5 palsy with regards to the posterior shift of spinal cord at C4/5 (p=0.008). The logistic regression analyses revealed posterior shift of the spinal cord at C4/5 (odds ratio, 12.066; p=0.029; 95% confidence interval, 1.295–112.378). For the other radiologic factors, there were no statistically significant differences between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: In the present study, we showed a significant difference in the posterior shift of the spinal cord at C4/5 between the palsy and the non-palsy groups, indicating that the "tethering phenomenon" was likely a greater risk factor for postoperative C5 palsy.
Humans ; Logistic Models ; Paralysis* ; Pathology ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors* ; Spinal Cord ; Spinal Cord Diseases*

BACKGROUND: Human T cell leukemia virus type-1 (HTLV-1) stimulates inflammation activity. Our previous study revealed a positive association between asymptomatic HTLV-1 infection and advanced periodontitis among elderly Japanese individuals with low levels of hematopoietic activity (reflected by reticulocyte levels). Since low hematopoietic activity has been correlated with low-grade inflammation and low-grade inflammation is associated with atherosclerosis, the status of atherosclerosis could, in turn, determine the nature of this association. METHODS: To this end, a cross-sectional study of 907 elderly Japanese individuals (aged 60-99 years), who had participated in dental health check-up during the period 2016-2018, was conducted. Advanced periodontitis was defined as periodontal pocket ≥ 6.0 mm. RESULTS: Among the study population, 295 (32.5%) were found to have atherosclerosis defined as a carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) of ≥ 1.1 mm. HTLV-1 infection was positively associated with advanced periodontitis in participants with atherosclerosis, but no significant associations were observed among the participants without atherosclerosis. The known risk factors' (including reticulocyte and CIMT) adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of advanced periodontitis were OR 2.01 and 95% CI 1.06-3.81 for participants with atherosclerosis and OR 0.61 and 95% CI 0.34-1.12 for participants without atherosclerosis. CONCLUSION This study found a significant association between HTLV-1 infection and advanced periodontitis among elderly Japanese with atherosclerosis. However, this association is absent in individuals without atherosclerosis, suggesting that atherosclerosis might act as a determinant in the association between HTLV-1 infection and advanced periodontitis among elderly Japanese.

BACKGROUND: We reported that human T cell leukemia virus 1 (HTLV-1) infection is positively associated with atherosclerosis. Recent evidence has revealed a close association of periodontitis with atherosclerosis, endothelial dysfunction, and disruption of the microcirculation. However, the association between HTLV-1 and advanced periodontitis has not been investigated to date. Since hematopoietic activity is closely linked to endothelial maintenance activity and is known to decline with age, we hypothesized that the state of hematopoietic activity influenced the association between HTLV-1 and advanced periodontitis in elderly participants. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was performed including 822 elderly participants aged 60-99 years who participated in a dental health check-up. Advanced periodontitis was defined as a periodontal pocket ≥ 6.0 mm. Participants were classified as having low or high hematopoietic activity according to the median values of reticulocytes. RESULTS: HTLV-1 infection was positively related to advanced periodontitis among participants with lower hematopoietic activity (lower reticulocyte count), but not among participants with higher hematopoietic activity (higher reticulocyte count). The adjusted odds ratio (95% confidence interval) considering potential confounding factors was 1.92 (1.05-3.49) for participants with a lower reticulocyte count and 0.69 (0.35-1.36) for participants with a higher reticulocyte count. CONCLUSIONS Among elderly participants, the association between HTLV-1 infection and advanced periodontitis is influenced by hematopoietic activity. Since hematopoietic activity is associated with endothelial maintenance, these findings provide an efficient tool for clarifying the underlying mechanism of the progression of periodontitis among elderly participants.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; HTLV-I Infections ; physiopathology ; Hematopoiesis ; physiology ; Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 ; physiology ; Humans ; Japan ; epidemiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Odds Ratio ; Periodontitis ; epidemiology ; virology ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors

BACKGROUND: We investigated the association between psychological distress and oral health status/oral health-related quality of life (OHQoL) in Japanese community-dwelling people. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study using data from the Nagasaki Islands Study. A total of 1183 (455 men and 728 women) has been analyzed in this study. Psychological distress was measured using the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6). Oral health status was measured by dental examination. The OHQoL was measured using the General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI). We defined the total score of ≥5 points on the K6 as high psychological distress (high-K6 group). RESULTS: The multiple linear regression analysis to identify the GOHAI showed that gender, K6, the total number of teeth, the number of dental caries, and visiting a dental clinic within the past 6 months significantly associated with the GOHAI. Among all of these variables, high-K6 (≥ 5) was a substantial contributing factor of the GOHAI (β = - 0.23, 95% Cl - 2.31 to -1.41, p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS It is likely that the individual with high psychological distress was strongly related to poor OHQoL even in the general population.
Aged ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Dental Caries/epidemiology* ; Female ; Humans ; Independent Living/statistics & numerical data* ; Japan/epidemiology* ; Linear Models ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Oral Health/statistics & numerical data* ; Quality of Life/psychology* ; Sex Factors ; Stress, Psychological/epidemiology*