We report the case of a 1-year-old female with invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) after three administrations of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) according to the immunization schedule for children in Japan. Blood culture detected Streptococcus pneumoniae 24B, which is a non-vaccine serotype. In Japan, PCV7 introduced in 2010 reduced the number of IPD patients under 5 years of age. However, the number of children under 5 years of age with IPD due to non-vaccine serotypes gradually increased after 2014 even though PCV13 was introduced in 2013. Pneumococcal vaccination cannot completely prevent IPD. Therefore, medical practitioners should pay attention to IPD due to non-vaccine serotypes.

Ischemic heart disease (IHD) poses a major complicating factor for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair. To identify patients with IHD, we evaluated patients scheduled to undergo AAA repair with dipyridamole-thallium scintigraphy (DTS) and coronary angiography (CAG). If indicated, coronary revascularization was performed. Finally, an assessment of the effectiveness of these preventive measures was made. One hundred and ten patients scheduled to undergo AAA repair were identified and treated accordingly over a 20-year period. As the pre-operative evaluation and prophylactic surgical revascularization strategies were instituted in 1983, the patients were divided into 2 groups: 25 patients between 1973-1982 (group A) and 85 patients between 1983-1992 (group B). The mean age of patients in group A was 65.3 years. The male/female ratio within this group was 21:4. One patient in the group had a history of IHD and 9 had hypertention. The mean age of patients in group B was 67.7 years. The male/female ratio within this group was 77:8. Fourteen patients in this group had a history of IHD and 27 had hypertension. Screening and treatment of IHD in group B was as follows. All patients with a history of IHD underwent CAG. Of the 32 patients with cardiac risk factors, including hypertension and hyperlipidemia, or ECG abnormalities who underwent DTS, 8 were referred for CAG. Thirty-nine patients with no risk factors and a normal ECG proceeded to AAA repair without further workup. Perioperative myocardial infarction occurred in 2 patients in grouzp A, leading to death in 1 patient. Coronary revascularization was performed in 5 patients in group B. No perioperative myocardial infarction occurred in this group. Pre-operative identification of high-risk cases with DTS, CAG, and coronary revascularization in patients with IHD may prevent cardiovascular complications in patients undergoing AAA repair.

To better understand the role of macrophages in early stages of experimental autoimmune myocarditis (EAM), we compared the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and arginase-1, markers for classically activated M1 and alternatively activated M2 macrophages, respectively, in the hearts of EAM-affected and control rats. Immunohistochemical evidence revealed that both iNOS-positive and arginase 1-positive macrophages were found in EAM lesions, while some cells were co-localized with both markers. This finding suggests that the increased level of arginase-1, which is partly from M2 macrophages, contributes to the modulation of EAM, possibly through the reduction of nitric oxide in the lesion.
Animals ; Arginase ; Heart ; Macrophages* ; Myocarditis* ; Nitric Oxide ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II ; Rats*

Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in Lewis rats is an acute monophasic paralytic central nervous system disease, in which most rats spontaneously recover from paralysis. EAE in Lewis rats is induced by encephalitogenic antigens, including myelin basic protein. EAE is mediated by CD4+ Th1 cells, which secrete pro-inflammatory mediators, and spontaneous recovery is mediated by regulatory T cells. Recently, it was established that classically activated macrophages (M1 phenotype) play an important role in the initiation of EAE, while alternatively activated macrophages (M2 phenotype) contribute to spontaneous recovery from rat EAE. This review will summarize the neuroimmunological aspects of active monophasic EAE, which manifests as neuroinflammation followed by neuroimmunomodulation and/or neuroprotection, with a focus on the role of alternatively activated macrophages.
Animals ; Central Nervous System ; Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental ; Macrophages ; Myelin Basic Protein ; Neuroimmunomodulation ; Paralysis ; Rats ; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory ; Th1 Cells

To elucidate the role of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in the pathogenesis of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), we analyzed the expression of constitutive neuronal NOS (nNOS), endothelial NOS (eNOS), and inducible NOS (iNOS) in the spinal cords of rats with EAE. We further examined the structural interaction between apoptotic cells and spinal cord cells including neurons and astrocytes, which are potent cell types of nitric oxide (NO) production in the brain. Western blot analysis showed that three forms of NOS significantly increased in the spinal cords of rats at the peak stage of EAE, while small amounts of these enzymes were identified in the spinal cords of rats without EAE. Immunohistochemical study showed that the expression of either nNOS or eNOS increased in the brain cells including neurons and astrocytes during the peak and recovery stages of EAE, while the expression of iNOS was found mainly in the inflammatory macrophages in the perivascular EAE lesions. Double labeling showed that apoptotic cells had intimate contacts with either neurons or astrocytes, which are major cell types to express nNOS and eNOS constitutively. Our results suggest that the three NOS may play an important role in the recovery of EAE.
Animals ; Apoptosis ; Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental/*enzymology ; Endothelium, Vascular/enzymology ; Immunohistochemistry ; In Situ Nick-End Labeling ; Male ; Nitric Oxide Synthase/*metabolism ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III ; Rats ; Rats, Inbred Lew ; Spinal Cord/*enzymology/pathology

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), is a chronic inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract, with increasing prevalence worldwide. IBD Ahead is an international educational program that aims to explore questions commonly raised by clinicians about various areas of IBD care and to consolidate available published evidence and expert opinion into a consensus for the optimization of IBD management. Given differences in the epidemiology, clinical and genetic characteristics, management, and prognosis of IBD between patients in Japan and the rest of the world, this statement was formulated as the result of literature reviews and discussions among Japanese experts as part of the IBD Ahead program to consolidate statements of factors for disease prognosis in IBD. Evidence levels were assigned to summary statements in the following categories: disease progression in CD and UC; surgery, hospitalization, intestinal failure, and permanent stoma in CD; acute severe UC; colectomy in UC; and colorectal carcinoma and dysplasia in IBD. The goal is that this statement can aid in the optimization of the treatment strategy for Japanese patients with IBD and help identify high-risk patients that require early intervention, to provide a better long-term prognosis in these patients.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Colectomy ; Colitis, Ulcerative ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; Consensus ; Crohn Disease ; Disease Management* ; Disease Progression ; Early Intervention (Education) ; Epidemiology ; Expert Testimony ; Gastrointestinal Tract ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Inflammatory Bowel Diseases* ; Japan* ; Prevalence ; Prognosis