[in Japanese]

View full abstract

We have analyzed pure tone audiograms of 100 retired personnel of the Army branch of the Self Defence Force. Hearing loss in the high frequency range (above 2 kHz) was found in more than 70% of the ears. Impulse noise from large caliber weapons and explosions appeared to be the cause of low frequency hearing loss slightly more often than the noise from small arms fire. There were no significant relationships between hearing loss, and smoking, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or diabetes mellitus.

View full abstract

A case of overlapping, calcifying epitheliomas in the left infraauricular region and the left upper arm of an 8 year old female is reported. The patient complained of overlapping tumors, albeit without pain or tenderness in the area. These tumors were resected completely, and were shown to have typical characteristics of calcifying epithelioma, namely, shadow cells, basophilic cells, and foreign body giant cells.

View full abstract

Relapsing polychondritis is a systemic inflammatory disease of unknown cause. We observed a 60-year old patient with relapsing polychondritis who also suffered from bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus and feelings of earobstruction. His general symptoms were improved with predonisolone treatment. However, his hearing level fluctuated during the course of treatment. Hearing in his left ear was improved after colchicine treatment.

View full abstract

We have followed 13 cases of nasopharyngeal carcinoma newly diagnosed in 1977 for a period of ten years. Of all the malignant head and neck carcinomas referred to our department, nasopharyngeal carcinomas accounted for 2.7%. Patients suffering from this carcinoma had a mean age of 50.4 years. The sex ratio was 3.7: 1, with male patients very much in predominance The most frequent symptom at the first examination was of cervical tumors (53.4%). In terms of stage classification, Stage III and Stage IV accounted for 30.8% and 69.2%, respectively. Primary lesions and cervical lymph node metastases were suppressed with initial therapy in 84.6% of the cases. There were 4 recurrences (30.8%). Two were local recurrences, while the other two were distant metastases. All patients with recurrences died within 2 wears. Furthermore, 3 other patients died. 2, in which we had been unable to halt the progress of the disease, an one due to pulmonary fibrosis. Survival rates of the radiotherapy group and the chemo-radiotherapy group were 16.7% and71.4%, respectively. CP chemotherapy combined with radiotherapy was considered far more effective than radiotherapy alone.

View full abstract

Sizofiran (SPG), a biological response modifier, was administered to 34 patients with head and neck cancer, to clarify the significance of administration of SPG during anti-cancer treatment. NK activity, lymphocytes, and lympho-blastomic ratio decreased in all patients, but these parameters tended to return to normal levels in the SPG group earlier than they did in the non-administered group. IAP was inhibited significantly after treatment with SPG. CD8⁺ cells were increased in the SPG group and two color flow cytometry revealed that this increase was due to a significant increase of CD8⁺ CD11⁺ group and the dull CD8⁺ CD11⁺ group. These results suggest that administration of SPG to head and neck cancer contribute to earlier recovery of immunocompetence after anticancer treatments.

View full abstract

A case of nodular fasciitis was reported. The patient was a 12 year old male who complained of a rapid growing tumor in the left nasal roof. The tumor was extirpated surgically. The tumor was analyzed histologically, and diagnosed as nodular fasciitis.

View full abstract

A case of Hunt's syndrome with multiple cranial symptoms was reported. A 58 year old man came in complaining of the following: facial pain, facial palsy, herpetic eruption of the external ear, impaired hearing on the left side, vertigo, dysphagia, and dysphonia facial pain on the herpes of the ear lobe. After clinical examination, this case was diagnosed as a herpes zoster infection affecting the V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X and XIth cranial nerves. A significant rise was noted in serum antibody titers against herpes zoster viru The equilibrium disorders were considered to be effects of peripheral vestibular disturbance and of the brain stem. A localized encephalitis involving the brainstem was suspected by neurological findings. The patient generally improved after acyclovir and steroid treatment, though the disturbance of the VIII, IX and Xth cranial nerves did not effectively respond to the treatment.

View full abstract

A very rare case of flaccid epiglottis was reported. A 51-year-old man had complained of progressive dyspnea and difficulty in swallowing. His epiglottis was flaccid and flopped backwards with each inspiration to block the laryngeal inlet. We excised his epiglottis using a CO₂ laser and the airway and degluttion was improved. This case is different from the well known congenital disease of laryngomalacia in respect to its occurring in an adult. It is supposed that the concavity of the right half of his epiglottis may explain this rare condition.

View full abstract

Eosinophilic granulomas of the soft tissue (Kimura's Disease) in the parotid region are distinguished from other parotid tumors. Although the clinical features, histopathological findings and etiology of this lesion have been thoroughly investigated, few reports have stressed the imaging properties of this disorder. To identify the role of diagnostic imaging in evaluating this disease, we viewed 5 patients with CT, sonography, and scintigraphy with ^99mTc-pertechnetates and ⁶⁷Ga-citrates. ⁶⁷Ga-citrates often showed subtle RI accumulation on the lesion, but it did not seem specific. Sonography revealed heterogeneous echogenic masses with ill-defined margins extending from the subcutaneous tissue into the parotid gland. These findings mimic the apperance of malignant tumors. CT also depicted roughly circumscribed masses extending from the subcutaneous tissue into the parotid gland, and showed remarkable intravenous contrast enhancement of the masses. In patients with extraglandular lymphoadenopathy, sonography showed homogeneous hypoechoic lymph nodes with well-defined margins. CT demonstrated well-defined lymph nodes pushing the parotid gland and showed remarkable intravenous contrast enhancement. CT is the most reliable imaging method to discern imaging chacteristics of this lesion, and we can confidently diagnose this discase by considering both the CT images and clinical features.

View full abstract

Non-specific granulomas of the larynx may be caused by an inflammatory change in the posterior wall of the larynx, an occurrence which often happens after excessive vocal use, coughing, throat clearing, or tracheal intubation. We report a case of non-specific granuloma of the larynx, in which malignant transformation had occured 5 years and 3 months after initial treatment. Malignant transformation in non-specific granulomas is extremely rare, but it is important to examine the laryngeal lesion carefully, and to maintain a strict followup to avoid missing malignant transformation.

View full abstract

Some asthma patients also are found to have nasal polyps. Before undergoing nasal polypectomies, it is necessary to control the asthmatic condition. Theophylline is useful for this, however, patients treated with theophylline need frequent monitoring of their serum level to prevent both subtherapeutic and toxic dosages. Conventional methods of measuring theophylline concentration are very difficult, and the results are not immediately obtainable. We utilized a new assay system, AccuLevel®, which uses enzyme immunochromatography, to measure theophylline levels in 10 asthmatic patients with nasal polyps. This newly developed system has already been reported to be reliable in its specificity, sensitivity, and reproducibility. AccuLevel® uses only 12μl of whole blood, is very easy to use, and could provide determination of these levels within 20 minutes. This new kit will undoubtedly become a useful adjunct in the treatment of asthma.

View full abstract

A clinical study was conducted to evaluate the utility of Dibekacin sulfate (DKB) in treating paranasal sinusitis, and the following results were obtained. 1) The clinical effectiveness rate, judged by the doctors in charge was 60.9%. 2) The clinical effectiveness rate judged by committee criteria was 56.5%. 3) Improvement rate was assessed by X ray determination to be 62.5%. 4) The bacteriological elimination rate of causative organisms was 50.0%. 5) No subjectively or objectively adverse effects were seen in any of the cases. From the above results, it was concluded that DKB is a useful antibiotic for the treatment of paranasal sinusitis.

View full abstract

Imaging procedures have been used for many years and are becoming increasingly important in a number of medical disciplines. This is due to recent technological advances, primarily computerization. The methods employed in CNS diagnostics are both cerebral morphology and cerebral function, such as CT, MRI, PET, and SPECT. Topographic mapping of EEG (evoked potentials) represents one of the functional procedures and permits topographic imaging of EEG. These techniques are completely noninvasive and have extremely short analysis time (in the millisecond range). One of the our recent experiances as for dizziness was presented. A topographic display of the skull EEG was used during simulated underwater experiments to determine; 1) Whether there are any characteristic EEG patterns in high pressure nervous syndrome (HPNS) 2) the relationship between the EEG changes and the characteristic signs and symptoms of HPNS. Some of the results revealed that frontal midline theta activity was associated mostly with some of the characteristic patterns of HPNS, such as a transient episode of euphoria, dizziness or tremor at depths grater than 21 ATA. And thus it was concluded that this frontal midline theta rhytm may have some correlation to the thalamus.

View full abstract