Arthritis of the carpometacarpal joint of the thumb is typically treated with oral anti-inflammatory drugs, external medicines, and temporary external fixation. We report 3 cases of arthritis of carpometacarpal joint of the thumb that were successfully treated with sokeikakketsuto. In cases 1 and 2, a 50-year-old woman and 68-year-old man, respectively, were diagnosed with arthritis of the carpometacarpal joint and were successfully treated with sokeikakketsuto. In case 3, a 66-year-old man complained of pain in the second carpometacarpal joint caused by gout, and was successfully treated with eppikajutsuto and daiobotampito. However, the pain in the carpometacarpal joint of the thumb due to arthritis remained, and was successfully treated with sokeikakketsuto. Eppikajutsuto and daiobotampito were effective for acute arthritis such as gout, and sokeikakketsuto was effective for osteoarthritis. Overall, patients with different diseases in the various local regions may have slightly different clinical presentations even in the same case.

Heberden's and Bouchard's nodes are clinical manifestations of osteoarthritis of the interphalangeal joints. Heberden's nodes typically affect the distal interphalangeal (DIP) and Bouchard's nodes, the proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joints of a fingers in patients with osteoarthritis. We describe osteoarthritis of the interpha­langeal joints in 3 women who were successfully treated with sokeikakketsuto. Case 1 : A 58-­year-­old woman presented with pain in the DIP joint of her left middle finger and was diagnosed with a Heberden's node. Case 2 : A 60­-year­-old woman presented with pain in the DIP joint of her left ring finger and was diagnosed with a Heberden's node. Case 3 : A 37­-year-­old woman presented with pain in PIP joint of her left ring finger and was diagnosed with a Bouchard's node. All women were successfully treated with sokeikakketsuto. In conclusion, sokeikakketsuto is a useful Kampo medication to treat mild-­to-­moderate pain secondary to bone, joint, or spinal conditions, as well as non-­steroidal anti­inflammatory drugs.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a common condition caused by compression of the median nerve. Patients usually present with numbness and pain along the distribution of the median nerve in the hand. We report 2 cases of carpal tunnel syndrome successfully treated with kakkonto after their pattern diagnosis. We treated a 57-year-­old women and a 59-­year-­old man. Two patients presented with hand pain and numbness and were diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome. Kakkonto treatment was successfully in two cases. We observed that median nerve compression persisted in these patients even after disappearance of numbness and pain ; therefore, we recommended operative management. The 2 patients underwent an operation for carpal tunnel syndrome. Kakkonto can be considered useful palliative treatment before considering operative management for numbness and pain in the patients with carpal tunnel syndrome.

We present two cases of night sweats due to eiefuwa (deficiencies of nutrients and defenses) that were suc­cessfully treated with Kampo medicine. Case 1 was that of a 64-­year-­old man with perspiration during sleep and slight fever, and Case 2 was that of a 78­-year-­old man with perspiration during sleep and common cold­-like symptoms. Case 1 was administered with saikokeishito, and his symptoms quickly disappeared. Case 2 was administered with common cold drugs and saikokeishito initially, but the treatment was ineffective. Therefore, keishito was administered, and the patient's symptoms disappeared within 2 days. Sweating and common cold-­like symptoms were successfully treated with Kampo medicine for the diagnosis of eiefuwa. Further, we discuss the various descriptions of eiefuwa in the literature.

Poor eating is a life-threatening condition in senior citizens. Herein, we report a case of poor eating due to stomach yin deficiency (wei yin xu), which was successfully treated with bakumondoto. The patient was a 91-year-old woman who expected treatment for her poor food intake. She was diagnosed as poor eating with stomach yin deficiency and was administered with bakumondoto, which increased her food intake and weight. To treat poor eating with Kampo medicine, rikkunshito and various other Kampo drugs are commonly used. In this case, bakumondoto, which is usually used for respiratory diseases such as dry cough, was effective. Bakumondoto is useful for stomach yin deficiency of poor eating.

In daily medical examinations of orthopedic surgery, treatment for chronic pain is sometimes needed. We report a case of chronic pain developed after an open fracture 15 years ago and successfully treated with sokeikakketsuto. A 35­-year-­old man unfortunately sustained an open fracture in his right lower leg in a traffic accident at his age of 20 years. He underwent 12­-13 surgeries for osteosynthesis, post-­operative focal infection, and leg extension. Subsequently, he developed periodic pain in his right ankle joint. He consulted our clinic because of the severe pain; although non-­steroidal anti-­inflammatory drugs were ineffective, sokeikakketsuto was dramatically effective. To treat chronic pain after an old fracture, sokeikakketsuto may be considered as a choice of treatment.

Crowned dens syndrome (CDS) is a pseudogout of the cervical vertebra, which shows calcification around the dens of the axis. We report a case of CDS that was successfully treated with daiobotampito and shimotsuto. An 83-year-old woman visited our clinic because of neck pain. She was diagnosed with CDS and was initially administered daiobotampito and eppikajutsuto. Her neck pain improved slightly, but recurred. She was then administered daiobotampito and shimotsuto, after which her neck pain disappeared. We considered that daiobotampito and shimotsuto were effective for this prolonged illness based on persistent stasis and blood deficiency according to her treatment course and laboratory findings.

A 74-year-old woman presented to our clinic with a history of vascular-and stent-graft insertion for aortic dissection developed a tendency to bleed from a palmar wound due to chronic disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). Initially, she sustained the palmar wound due to a fall. On the second day after the injury, she experienced continuous bleeding and consulted the orthopedic department of a general hospital, where her dressing was changed. On the third day after injury, she sought consultation at our clinic. The clot and wound remained intact even 12 days after the injury. Therefore, the clot was removed and the bleeding was stopped surgically. On the same day, 5 hours after the surgical treatment, the patient presented to our clinic because of continuous bleeding. She was then administered kyukikyogaito and kamikihito to stop the bleeding. Her laboratory findings revealed thrombocytopenia, and additional inspection was performed. The bleeding stopped on the next day. On the third day after administration, the bleeding remained controlled and an additional inspection revealed DIC. In the cardiology hospital, the cause of tendency to bleed of chronic DIC was pointed out as being due to a leakage at the end of the stent-graft. Kampo medicine was thought to be useful for temporal hemostasis for bleeding due to chronic DIC.

We herein report a case of 91-year-old woman with antiresorptive agent-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (ARONJ) developed during treatment for osteoporosis with intravenous ibandronate. Although she was treated with several antibiotics and had an incision for the drainage of a pus discharge at a dental clinic for two months after the onset of ARONJ, the discharge persisted. We then added hochuekkito to her treatment, which resulted in a gradual decreased in pus discharge and decrease in wound size and the wound resolved after approximately one month. ARONJ is considered a refractory disease, however, it was successfully treated with hochuekkito in this patient. ARONJ is also a rare condition and to our knowledge, this is considered to be the first case of ARONJ, which has been successfully treated with Kampo medicine.

Eruption as a dermatological disease is often localized, which is not fully explained by Western medicine. However, localization of eruption is interpreted in Kampo medicine according to meridian and collateral theo­ries, and here, we report two cases of successful treatment with Kampo medicine. Case 1 was of a 32-year-old woman who visited our clinic because of localized eruption around her mouth and was diagnosed with acne vulgaris. She was administered rikkunshito effectively. Case 2 was of a 37-year-old man who visited our clinic because of localized eruption in the anterior portion of the neck and was diagnosed with atopic dermatitis. He was administered shin'iseihaito effectively. Rikkunshito and shin'iseihaito are generally not adapted for dermatological diseases but were effective. After treatment we considered meridian and collateral theories. These two cases are depended on stomach meridian of foot-yangming and large intestine meridians of hand­-yangming, rikkunshito and shin'iseihaito were consisted of herbs concerning with spleen and lung meridians. Two cases were successfully treated through spleen meridian of greater yin and hand great yin lung meridian, which make exterior and interior with stomach meridian of foot-yangming and large intestine meridians of hand-yangming. Kampo medicine was effective for treating these diseases based on meridian and collateral theories.