We successfully treated a patient with palmoplantar pustulosis, with a combined formulation of hainosankyuto and maobushisaishinto. The patient was a 64-year-old female, who had frequently occurring pustulae of about 2 mm in size on her palms and soles, from about May 2000. These pustulae became a crust over time, and the skin peeled off and healed. However, pustulae would persist again every two weeks. We diagnosed this as palmoplantar pustulosis and administered hainosankyuto, but with limited results, whereupon we added maobushisaishinto. As a result of this combined hainosankyuto and maobushisaishinto formulation, our patient with palmoplantar pustulosis recovered significantly after 4 weeks.
Patients ; week ; Treated with ; Combined ; SIZES

I report two cases of subchorionic hematoma successfully treated with Tokishakuyakusan. They had genital bleeding due to subchorionic hematoma in the second trimester of pregnancy. I prescribed Tokishakuyakusan, and their genital bleeding improved within a week after the administration. The hematoma disappeared in less than two weeks after the administration, and they delivered infants of 2470g and 3324g respectively at 39 weeks pregnant by vaginal delivery. I found Ketsu stagnation, Sui disturbance and coldness of extremities in two cases. Although several studies suggested that the presence of subchorionic hematoma might be associated with adverse pregnancy outcome, there is no effective treatment for subchorionic hematoma in western medicine. The present cases suggest that Tokishakuyakusan may be useful in the treatment of subchorionic hematoma.
Hematoma ; week ; Cases ; Treated with ; Two

The antiparasitic effect of cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) was tested in goats artificially infected with gastrointestinal parasitic nematodes. Each experimental group consisted of 6 pen-fed goats kept on a slatted floor. The treatments compared were: 1) controls fed grass only, 2) cassava replaced grass for 3 weeks from the commencement of larval dosing period, and 3) cassava replaced grass for 3 weeks after the worm infection was patent. A total of 2000 mixed-species infective nematode larvae (L3) were administered to each goat in four doses of 500 L3/day, commencing 5 weeks after removal of previously acquired infections with ivermectin. The faecal egg counts (FEC) reduced in both cassava fed groups during the time of feeding, compared to the controls. Although, FEC increased differently with time (P < 0.05), total adult worm burdens at slaughter (week 15) were not different between the treatment groups. No differences in live weight gain, or packed cell volume, between treatments were found. Whilst these results show limited evidence of an anthelmintic effect of cassava in the diet, they do suggest that feeding, or supplementation, of cassava over an extended period may prove beneficial.
week ; Feeding ; Gastrointestinal ; Cassava ; Parasites

Background/Objectives: Since April 2006, smoking cessation treatment has been included in public health insurance coverage, although conditionally. The tobacco control program usually takes 12 weeks or so. When it comes to the form of treatment, most medical care facilities adopt nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) at their outpatient ward. The cessation success rates are considered not so high as before. In stead of treating nicotine-addict outpatients individually, our hospital has been offering a stop-smoking program all its own since 1999. This study was designed to examine the results of our efforts in the last six years retrospectively.Subjects/Methods: Enrolled for this study were 232 patients who had participated in our six-month smoking cessation program between 1999 and 2005. A non-smokingsupport team made up of a physician, pharmacist(s), nurses, dietitian(s) and physical therapist(s) takes care of groups of participating patients, each group consisting of 10 or less. The patients undergo behavior therapy throughout the 6-month period and NRT in the first eight weeks. Under the program, nutrition guidance is offered regularly by dietitians for weight control and physical exercises by physical therapists for relief from the stress due to abstinence from smoking. We took a questionnaire survey of all the subjects and worked out the ratios of those persons who had remained abstinent up to one year after they stopped smoking to the total.Results: The rates of abstinence maintained eight weeks, six months and one year after the start of cessation were 78.4%, 70.3% and 64.7%, respectively. Of those who were still abstinent, 78.0% replied that they found it easy to resist the urge to smoke cigarette thanks to the smoking cessation program.Conclusion: Our six-month participatory tobacco control program was found effective as high cessation rates were maintained.
Cessation of smoking ; seconds ; month ; week ; Smoking

Aim and background: Chronic insomnia in elderly patients significantly affects their health and quality of life (QOL). Nocturia also worsens sleep condition. The aim of this study was to evaluate the improvement effects of quazepam, a long-term acting benzodiazepine, on insomnia and nocturia in elderly patients. Method: Forty-one elderly outpatients (mean age 77.1 ± 5.6 yr) suffering from chronic insomnia while on regular a short- or ultra-short-acting hypnotic treatment were enrolled. We prescribed 7.5-15 mg of quazepam, which was administered regularly by the subjects before bedtime. A questionnaire was used to compared changes in quality of sleep and frequency of nocturia for before treatment and at 2 and 4 weeks after initiation of treatment. QOL was also examined using the 36-item Short Form Health Survey of the Medical Outcomes Study (SF-36). Results: Thirty-seven subjects (90.2%) completed the study. All subscales of the sleep quality questionnaire improved significantly (p<0.001) after 2 weeks, as did the total scores (p<0.001) after 4 weeks. Frequency of nocturia decreased significantly from 3.6 ± 1.7 times to 1.5 ± 0.8 (p<0.001) and 1.2 ± 1.0 times (p<0.001) after 2 and 4 weeks, respectively. Every SF-36 subscale also showed significant improvement after 4 weeks. The total SF-36 scores of the group showing a decrease in the frequency of nocturia (>/= 2 times) improved significantly compared with that with a frequency of < 2 times (p=0.016). Conclusion: Quazepam significantly improves sleep, QOL and nocturia in elderly patients that respond poorly to short-acting or ultra-short-acting hypnotics.
Nycturia ; Elderly ; week ; lower case pea ; Sleep

We report on two cases of diamniotic dichorionic pregnancy with delayed delivery of the second twin. Case 1 was a 29-year-old woman with a twin pregnancy at 19 weeks and 0 day presenting with a preterm rupture of the membranes (PROM) of the first twin. The patient was treated with ritodrine and systemic broad-spectrum antibiotics. Six hours after admission, the first twin was delivered stillborn without complication. At 23 weeks and 5 days, preterm labor resulted in and the second twin being delivered stillborn at a weight of 564 g. The interval between the first and second delivery was 33 days. Case 2 was a 30-year-old woman with a twin pregnancy at 15 weeks and 4 days presenting with amniotic fluid leakage. PROM was found, and she was treated with ritodrine and systemic broad-spectrum antibiotics. The next day, the first twin was delivered stillborn. At 26 weeks, due to adverse effects, ritodrine was changed to isoxsuprine and magnesium sulfate to control uterine contractions. At 33 weeks and 5 days, onset of labor was observed, and 11 hours after the cessation of treatment with isoxsuprine and magnesium sulfate, a viable female fetus was delivered by spontaneous vaginal delivery, weighing 1,806 g. The mother developed atonic bleeding of the uterus immediately after delivery.;The interval between the first and second twin deliveries was 33 days in case 1 and 127 days in case 2. The longer interval resulted in better fetal outcome, but it also may have increased the risk to the mother.
Twin Multiple Birth ; Delivery ; week ; Ritodrine ; Pregnancy

Imatinib mesylate, a specific inhibitor of BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase, has been mainly used for the management of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Common side effects of imatinib include hematologic toxicity, liver dysfunction, edema, fluid retention, gastrointestinal symptoms, and skin rashes among others. We experienced a patient with imatinib-associated diarrhea, who was successfully treated with hangeshashinto. The patient was 61 year-old female, who first consulted our clinic in June, 2005. Her complaint was frequent diarrhea(4 or 5 times a day) which occurred after the introduction of imatinib. Four weeks after hangeshashinto was administered, her bowel movement improved from watery diarrhea to loose stool twice a day. Eight weeks later, her symptom disappeared. It is generally accepted that imatinib should be administered continuously to obtain a complete clinical remission of CML. From the viewpoint of eastern and western medicine integration, it is significant that a Kampo medicine contributed to continuous therapy with imatinib.
IMATINIB ; Diarrhea ; BCR Gene ; week ; Treated with

We report a case of bone marrow necrosis preceding infantile acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). Bone marrow necrosis is a rare antemortem event and has been known to be present in many conditions, notably in haematological malignancies like acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. This case was a 6-month-old Chinese boy who was referred to Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia for further investigation of pancytopaenia, high-grade fever, bloody diarrhoea and petechial rashes for one week. His first bone marrow aspirate revealed bone marrow necrosis. His clinical condition improved after ten days. However, his full blood picture then revealed the presence of 5% blast cells. His subsequent marrow 2 weeks later revealed acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (FAB-L1) and immunophenotyping showed precursor B acute lymphoblastic leukaemia-null type. He was started on United Kingdom Acute Lymphoblastic leukaemia (UK ALL) Infantile Leukaemia protocol, however, he defaulted treatment after 3 days. Mode of presentation, mechanism of disease and laboratory investigations and outline of treatment will be discussed.
Acute ; Lymphoblast ; Bone Marrow ; Necrosis ; week

Defects were created in the mandible of a rabbit model whereby the right side was implanted with hydroxyapatite (HA) while the left side was left empty to act as control. Both the implant and control sites were evaluated clinically and histologically at 4,12,20,22 weeks. Decalcified sections were studied under confocal laser scanning microscope. No reactive cells were evident microscopically in all sections. There was bone ingrowth as early as 4 weeks when viewed by the topographic method. Enhancement of osteoconduction was evident by the presence of abundant capillaries, perivascular tissue and osteoprogenitor cells of the host. At 22 weeks, the implanted defect showed mature bone formation filling almost the whole field. This study demonstrated that the dense HA exhibits excellent biocompatibility as noted by the complete absence of reactive cells. It also promotes osteoconduction.
Materials ; Skeletal bone ; week ; Durapatite ; in vivo study

This study evaluates the effect of a commercial brand of chicken essence (BEC) on the various parameters related to stress and cognition of human volunteers. BEC is produced by a hot-water extraction process from chicken meat under high pressure conditions. It contains concentrated amounts of proteins, amino acids and peptides such as carnosine compared to homemade traditional chicken soup. Due to the unique extraction process, it has been postulated that readily absorbed amino acids and bioactive peptides are present in BEC. In this study, we evaluated the effect of BEC in comparison with a placebo on a group of distressed medical students. Students were randomly divided into two groups and given either BEC or a placebo drink daily for two weeks. Before and after the two weeks, the students were given a series of tests to assess their level of cognitive functioning and perceived stress level while being monitored for EEG recording. The combination of these tests, namely Digit span, Arithmetic and Letter-number sequencing, generally assessed the student’s attention and working memory. The working memory performance of students who ingested essence of chicken was found to be significantly better than those who consumed placebo when data comparing baseline and after two weeks consumption were compared. This study seems to suggest that essence of chicken has positive effects on the subjects’ cognitive functions.
Chickens ; seconds ; week ; cognitive ability ; Placebos