We report two cases in which insomnia successfully treated with sansoninto alone or in combination and the effectiveness could be objectively evaluated with the portable sleep test. Case 1 was 40-year-old man who had suffered from arousal during sleep and daytime fatigue for several years. After taking sansoninto with ninjinto, his symptoms improved. Case 2 was 60-year-old woman who had suffered from a lack of deep sleep and daytime sleepiness. After taking sansoninto, she could get a deep sleep and could have less daytime sleepiness. In this report, we present that portable sleep test conducted before and after treatment confirmed that sleep quality improved. Sansoninto is one of the curative medicines for insomnia, but we believe this is the first report showing objective therapeutic effects using portable sleep test.

Purpose: This study aimed to analyze the terminal care attitudes of healthcare members engaged in palliative care and the factors associated with these attitudes. Methods: We conducted a survey for healthcare members engaging in palliative care including oncologists and palliative care doctors using the Japanese version of the Frommelt Attitudes Toward Care of the Dying (FATCOD B-J), a scale that measures the attitude of medical stuff toward the care of dying patients. Results: A total of 223 (response rate=42.2%) responses were obtained and analyzed. Multiple regression analysis using the FATCOD B-J total score as the objective variable showed that 30s had lower partial regression coefficients than 40s (−3.8). Higher “satisfaction from work” and “interest in palliative care” were associated with greater partial regression coefficients (+5.7, +6.2). Conclusion: A sense of satisfaction and interest in palliative care may be important to cultivate terminal care attitudes among health care providers involved in palliative care.

We describe a 50-year-old man who was diagnosed with anomalous aortic origin of the right coronary artery (AAORCA) by coronary angiography and coronary computed tomography performed for chest pain on exertion. Exercise-loaded myocardial scintigraphy revealed inferior wall ischemia, and hence surgery was performed. Intraoperatively, the right coronary artery was seen to run in the aortic wall, and hence, right coronary ostioplasty (unroofing) was performed. Postoperatively, coronary computed tomography revealed that the right coronary artery originated from a normal position, and exercise-loaded myocardial scintigraphy indicated no ischemia.

Medtronic Freestyle Stentless bioprosthesis as well as stented bioprosthesis, can lead to structural valve deterioration (SVD) or disruption of the porcine aortic root. Seventeen years ago, a 52-year-old woman with aortitis syndrome underwent aortic root replacement in a full-root fashion for aortic regurgitation (AR) with a Freestyle aortic bioprosthesis. A recent follow-up echocardiogram revealed severe AR due possibly to SVD. Thus, we planned an aortic valve replacement (AVR) for AR with possible leaflet tear of the prosthesis. Upon completion of AVR while the aortotomy was being closed, however, a disruption in the porcine aortic wall was found. Root replacement had to be performed because of this finding. In stentless valve reoperation long after AVR with the full-root method, both the porcine aortic root and leaflets can be disrupted. Aortic root replacement may be necessary if preoperative images reveal dilatation, as well as disruption of the sinus of Valsalva.

A 42-year-old woman with Turner syndrome was admitted to our hospital due to severe aortic stenosis. Transthoracic echocardiography demonstrated severe aortic stenosis with a bicuspid aortic valve. Enhanced computed tomography revealed that the left upper pulmonary vein connected to the innominate vein, and the ascending aorta was enlarged (maximum diameter of 41 mm). Surgical intervention was performed though median sternotomy with cardiopulmonary bypass. After achieving cardiac arrest by antegrade cardioplegia, we performed an anastomosis to connect the left upper pulmonary vein to the left atrial appendage. Then, aortic valve replacement was performed with an oblique aortotomy in the anterior segment of the ascending aorta. The aortic valve was a unicaspid aortic valve. Following completion of aortic valve replacement with a mechanical valve, reduction aortoplasty was performed on the ascending aorta. The postoperative course was uneventful.

An unconscious 79-year-old woman was admitted. Echocardiography showed cardiac tamponade with pericardial effusion. Enhanced computed tomography revealed pericardial effusion and a coronary artery aneurysm (maximum diameter of 16 mm) on the left side of the main pulmonary artery. Emergency coronary angiography confirmed the aneurysm, which originated from a branch of the left anterior descending artery. Emergency surgery was performed through median sternotomy with cardiopulmonary bypass. After cardiac arrest by antegrade cardioplegia, the aneurysm was opened and two orifices of the arteries were observed. The orifices were ligated, and the remaining aneurysmal wall was closed with a continuous suture. A pathological examination of the aneurysmal wall demonstrated an atherosclerotic true aneurysm.

A 52-year-old man underwent a medical examination, including abdominal computed tomography (CT). Abdominal CT revealed a common hepatic artery aneurysm (25 mm in diameter) ; a portion of the aneurysm depressed the pancreas. The gastroduodenal artery branched off the common hepatic artery aneurysm. We planned coil embolization for the common hepatic artery aneurysm. However, we could not avoid occluding the proper hepatic artery ; therefore, we performed abdominal aortic-proper hepatic artery bypass with coil embolization. The patient's postoperative course was uneventful.

We report two cases with postoperative sternal osteomyelitis after coronary artery bypass graft (CABG), in whom successful two-stage reconstruction was performed via negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) and pectoralis major myocutaneous flaps. Two patients underwent CABG using bilateral internal thoracic arteries, after which they had surgical site infection (SSI). The intractable wound did not heal with irrigation and NPWT. Then, sternal osteomyelitis was observed via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), so we planned two-stage reconstruction. The first stage of treatment consisted of complete debridement (including removal of sternal wires and necrosectomy of soft tissue and sequestrum) and application of NPWT until the remission of inflammation. The second stage consisted of wound closure with pectoralis major myocutaneous advancement flaps. After wound closure, the two patients were given 2 months of oral antibiotics, and the postoperative results were good. Two-stage reconstruction with NPWT and pectoralis major myocutaneous flaps results in excellent clinical outcome. In the first stage, the key to the successful management of postoperative sternal osteomyelitis is infection control. This includes surgical debridement and wound-bed preparation with NPWT. The pectoralis major myocutaneous flap technique is brief and does not require a second cutaneous incision or an intact internal thoracic artery. In conclusion, the pectoralis major myocutaneous flap is a useful option in two-stage reconstruction after CABG.

We report two cases of total arch replacement with open stent graft for the aberrant right subclavian artery (ARSA). Case 1 was a thoracic artery aneurysm with an ARSA. We thought it would be difficult to perform in-situ reconstruction of ARSA via median sternotomy, so we performed total arch replacement with the open stent-grafting technique. Therefore the right axillary artery was reconstructed by extra-anatomical bypass and coil embolization of the ARSA proximal to the vertebral artery to achieve complete thrombosis of the ARSA. The postoperative course was uneventful. Case 2 was a Stanford type A acute aortic dissection involving an ARSA with the entry located near the ARSA. Total arch replacement was performed using the open stent-grafting technique to close the entry site and origin of the ARSA. Then the right axillary artery was reconstructed by extra-anatomical bypass and coil embolization of the ARSA. The postoperative course was uneventful. The open stent-grafting technique might be an effective alternative management of thoracic aortic disease with ARSA.

A 71-year-old man underwent a medical checkup at another hospital with principal complaint of chest discomfort, and was diagnosed by computed tomography (CT) to have a left subclavian artery aneurysm. The CT revealed a 33-mm saccular aneurysm that was located at the proximal portion of the left subclavian artery. Because of the high risk of surgery, we planned to insert a stent graft into the left subclavian artery. We could not avoid occluding the ostium of the left vertebral artery with commercially-available stent grafts, and so decided to insert a surgeon-modified stent graft, in which the fabric of the distal portion of the stent graft was stripped away. The surgeon-modified stent graft was inserted from the conduit of the left axillary artery. Postoperative course was uneventful and the postoperative examination confirmed complete exclusion of the aneurysm and patency of the left vertebral artery.