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Yasuhiko Itoh
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
3
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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Masaaki Mori, Shumpei Yokata
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
4-8
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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Toshiki Kizawa, Hiroyuki Tsutsulni, Shumpei Yokota
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
9-14
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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Sayaka lshikawa, Masaki Shimizu, Naotoshi Sugimoto, Akihiro Yachie
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
15-20
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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To assess the role of interleukin(lL) -33 and ST2, the receptor fbr IL-33,in the pathogenesis of systemic
juvenile idiopathic arthritis(s-JIA), we sequentially measured the seruln levels of IL-33 and soluble ST2(sST2)
in patients with s-JIA and deterlnined their correlation with measures of disease activity and severity.Twenty four
patients with s-J工A,5“)’ith rheumatoid factor positive polyarticular JIA(RF+poly-JIA), and 20 age-matched
healthy controls(HCs)were analyzed、 IL-33 and sST21evels were quantified in serum by enzyme-linked
immunosorbent assays. Serum IL-331evels in most patients with active s-JIA were below the lowest detection
limit. Serum IL-331evels in patients with RF+poly-JIA were much higher than those in patients with s-JIA and
HCs. Serum sST2 1evels in patients during the active phase of s-JIA were mutch higher than thosc ill patients
with poly-JIA and HCs. Serum sST2 1evels in patients with s-JIA were sjgnificantly elevated even in the inactive
phase, when other clinical parameters were normalized. Serum sST21evels correlated positively with the clinical
parameters of disease activity. These findings indicate that ST2 may be an important lnediator in s-JIA. Serum
sST2 1evels in patients with s-JIA correlated with disease activity, suggesting a potential role as a promising
indicator of disease activity.
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Natsumi Inoue, Masaki Shimizu, Yuko Tasaki, Sayaka lshikawa, Kazuyuki ...
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
21-25
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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Microvascular damage is closely related to tlle pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis(SSc)or juvenile
dermatomyositis(JDM). Nailfold Video Capillaroscopy(NVC)is a convenient and noninvasive method to
analyze the capillary morphology and architecture. Abnormal NVC findings including giant capillaries are
specifically observed in patients with SSc and JDM. Early in the disease, thesc findings can be well recognized by
NVC,which is reported to have both diagnostic and prognostic values in SSc and JDM. In this report, we report
sequential NVC findings in one patient with SSc and two patients with JDM.NVC patterns were correlated with
disease activity of these diseases. NVC is the convenient and safe method to analyze microvascular abnormalities
and is useful for differential diagnosis and evaluation of disease activity in SSc and JDM.
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Masako Kikuchi, Tomo Nozawa, Tomomi Sato, Kenichi Nishimura, Taichi Ka ...
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
26-31
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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Patients with juvenile fibromyalgia(JFM) have been treated with multidirectional approach during
hospitalization in our hospital. Admission isolates JFM patients from their troublesome environment that they cannot handle well in their school and/or home. The patients who have severe physical disability and come-up against difficult situation were suitable for hospitalization. The patients are in scheduled daily life and enroll in an in-hospital class during hospitalization. Rehabilitation is started for improvement of patient's physical disability and drug therapy is helpful for relieving pain. A total of 32 children(aged 7.9-15.7 years)who admitted in our hospital from March 2001 to December
2012 were retrospectively examined by medical record. Fifty-three percent of the patients were improved in clinical stage,and only one patient got worse in activities of daily living. In nine out of 32 patients,tender point counts were decreased,and disappeared in 6 out of 32 patients. Nine out of 25 patients who stopped going to school came to go to school at three months after leaving hospital.
We suggest that multidirectional approach during hospitalization must be effective therapy for severe JFM patients to improve their physical disability.
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Rika Fjirnaru, Yusuke Kumagai, Hiroaki Ueda, lchizo Nishino, Asako Hor ...
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
32-36
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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A3-year-old boy was admitted to our hospital because of a prolonged fever,red lips,cervical
lymphadenopathy,a generalized rash,edema of the extremities and ambulation difficulty. A physical examination
demonstrated a facial erythematous rash with edema but no heliotrope rash or Gottron's papules. His ESR and
muscle enzymes such as CK were elevated but CRP was normal. Echocardiography revealed a normal ejection
fraction and no coronary artery dilatation. Clinical findings were thought to be consistent with the diagnosis of
Kawasaki disease(KD). He was given 2g/kg of intravenous immunoglobulin along with aspirin. Although he became afebrile, his symmetric proximal muscle weakness persisted. An MRI showed hyperintensity of his thigh muscle on T2-weighted images, consistent with myopathy. His muscle biopsy specimens demonstrated perifascisular atrophy, necrosis and variation in fiber size. Given the results of clinica1-pathological findings,in addition to the imaging pictures. the diagnosis was deterlnined to be consistent with juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM). He was treated with pulse steroids of 3 courses. All clinical and laboratory abnorlnalities were reversed.
We dcscribed, to the best of our knowledge. the first reported case of JDM with features of KD. Clinically it is difficult to differentiate between these two vascuIitis diseases,especially when KD is in its atypical form.
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Masaaki Hamada, Shuji Miura, Hideki Akazawa
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
37-43
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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A l3-year-old girl visited our outpatient clinic complaining of cough and rhinorrhea. She had butterfly
erythema on the face and several itchy papules on the upper limbs. Proximal muscle weakness was evident.
Laboratory examination revealed proteinuria and an elevated serum level of creatine kinase(6,802 IU/L).
Abnormal findings on the muscles in the front of both the thigh in magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)was
suggestive of inflalllmato17y myositis. She was diagnosed as juvenile dermatomyositis and was initially treated
with 2 cycles of methylprednisolone pulse therapy. Although the initial treatment failed to achieve full remission,
second line treatment with intravenous cyclophosphamide pulse therapy(IVCY)was effective and muscle
weakness was markedly improved. However. when the interval of IVCY administration was prolonged, the
levels of muscle enzymes were elevated again. She was subsequently treated with mizoribine in lieu of
cyclophosphamide. This decreased the levels of muscle enzymes.which allowed us to reduce the dose of oral
prednisolone. As total dosage of cyclophosphamide should be limited because of its side effects, it is impossible
to unboundedly continue IVCY. The present case suggests the effectiveness of mizoribine for refractory juvenile
dermatomyositis.
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Takuyo Kanayama, Maki Shimizu, Tsuyako Iwai, Asayuki Iwai
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
44-47
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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A 1-month-old girl whose mother has been diagnosed with anti U1RNP antibody-positive mixed
connective tissue disease came to our hospital because of oral ulcer,poor weight gain and slight erythema. A
week later,oral ulcer improved although erythema expanded gradually.Shc was diagnosed with neonatal lupus
erythematosus(NLE)because anti U1RNPantibody was detected from herself. Weight gain was turned well, and
erythema improved gradually,completely disappeared at 6 months of age. No electrocardiogram abnormality
was observed. NLE is an autoimmune syndrome caused by acquired autoantibody through the placenta from the
mother. The major antibody that cause NLE are anti-SS-A antibody and anti-SS-B antibody. although anti-UIRNP
antibody was positive in this presented case. This is an interesting case of female NLE, in that first symptom
were oral ulcer and poor weight gain,and erythema exacerbated later.
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Mao Mizuta, Kazuko Kasai, Yasuo Nakagishi, Mari Miyoshi
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
48-51
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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lt is a case of the 6-month-old girl introduced to our hospital for fever of undetermined origin. She had
fever and exanthema,her serum CRP level was high and her echocardiography revealed a coronary aneurysm. At
the time, we diagnosed that she was Kawasaki disease. However,enhanced CT performed at day 36 demonstrated
vasculitis.Therefore,we decided her diagnosis as Takayasu arteritis,and treated with metylpredorlisolone (mPSL) pulses with anticoagulant therapy. The coronary arteries were extended although inflammation was an
improvement tendency,so the treatment of mPSL pulses was canceled,and a treatment of cyclophosphamide
pulses was started.
Her clinical and biochemical parameters improved with cyclophospharnide. Although a total of six
courses of cyclophosphamide pulse therapies was enforced using azathioprine (AZP)together after that,advance
of the narrowing artery of the coronary arteries and others is not accepted by the present. It was the case that the
differential diagnosis of Kawasaki disease and Takayasu arteritis was difficult, and the selection of the treatment
was not easy to us.
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Toshitaka Kizawa, Takeshi Tsugawa, Takako Takeuchi, Hotaka Kamasaki, Y ...
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
52-56
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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We report a 12-year-old boy with juvenile intestinal Behcet’s disease. He presented with fever and oral
aphtha repeatedly from early childhood and his blood examination often showed an inflammatory reaction. But
no bacteria were found in any bacteriological examination.CT, MRI and scintigram of the whole body were
normal.his bone marrow chromosomal test revealed trisomy 8(47XY,+8[19]/46XY[1]),raising suspicion of
the presence of intestinal Behcet's disease. Endoscopy revealed several circular ulcers in his distal esophagus
and ileocecal region. He was diagnosed as intestinal Behcet's disease with accompanying trisomy 8.
Myelodysplastic syndrome(MDS) which often complicates trisomy 8 was not observed in his bone marrow.
This was a rare case in which the marrow chromosome abnormalities led to the diagnosis of the cause of
an unknown fever. In addition it is very interesting case in terms of studying the pathogenic mechanism of
intestinal Behcet’s disease.
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Yoshihiko Sakurai, Mutsuzo Takada, Hideo Takatsuka, Masato Nishino
2014 Volume 5 Issue 1 Pages
57-62
Published: 2014
Released on J-STAGE: December 15, 2020
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Although most fevers ill children are acute and are due to common infections, we sometimes encounter
patients with persistent fever of unknown origin(FUO). Recent discovery of autoinflammatory syndromes
further provides diagnostic advances, Nevertheless, it remains difficult to make a definitive diagnosis in some
cases of FUO. A fourteen-year-old girl visited our clinic, complaining recurrent fever over 38.0°C with headache.
nausea, vomiting, anorexia, and general malaise.Although infections, tumors, drug-induced fever, autoimmune
disorders、 and autoinflammatory syndromes were considered as differential diagnosis, we failed to obtain
laboratory results consistent with these conditions. Repeated blood examinations did not show any positive
inflammatory markers. A gallium scintigraphy performed ill a febrile condition was negative. The levels of
inflammatory cytokines were within normal ranges. Taken together,we reached a diagnosis of psychogenic fever.
As persistent high body temperature is not commonly seen in psychogenic fever, it was difficult for us to yield a
correct diagnosis.Our case suggests that when we see a patient with persistent fever without source consideration
should be given to psychogenic fever.
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