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Volume 210 (2006)
- Issue 4 Pages 279-
- Issue 3 Pages 175-
- Issue 2 Pages 91-
- Issue 1 Pages 1-
Volume 210, Issue 2
October
Displaying 1-11 of 11 articles from this issue
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Regular Contributions
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Azman Ates, Ahmet Özyazicioglu, Ibrahim Yekeler, Münacettin ...2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 91-97
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThe types of fistulae used and their complication rates are important for the hemodialysis patients. We aimed to compare retrospectively the primary and secondary patency rates and complications of upper extremity arteriovenous fistulae. Between 1984 and 2005, a total of 1,233 upper extremity arteriovenous fistulae were created in 920 patients. The mean age was 42 ± 21 years. The fistulae were divided into the 3 groups; 588 radiocephalic, 205 brachiocephalic, and 127 were created by polytetrafluoroethylene graft. The fistulae types were evaluated with regard to their primary-secondary patency rates and complications. There was a significant difference with regard to development of thrombosis in radiocephalic group compared to other two groups, respectively, p = 0.0122, p = 0.0091. In brachiocephalic fistulae group, edema and steal phenomenon were statistically significant (p < 0.0001). The aneurysm formation was statistically significant in polytetrafluoroethylene fistulae graft group (p < 0.0001). During 6 months, 2 and 5 years period, while primary patency rate was higher in three fistulae types, in radiocephalic fistulae both primary and secondary fistulae patency rates were lower (p < 0.05). To create successful arteriovenous fistulae with long-term patency, appropriate veins of patients should be carefully preserved; thus initially a distal site should be preferred, and in case of failure the next fistulae should be created proximally. In case of failure of forearm fistulae, primary fistulae with autogenous veins should be tried at the upper arm first, and if this also fails, fistulae formation with synthetic grafts should be considered.View full abstractDownload PDF (288K) -
Chang-Wan Han, Yuki Yajima, Kazuo Nakajima, Eun-Joo Lee, Makiko Meguro ...2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 99-107
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSMany researchers have developed various measures to evaluate the functional status of community-dwelling elderly. The Frenchay Activities Index (FAI) was developed to measure instrumental activities of daily living in stroke populations. The FAI has undergone the most intensive evaluation, but its factor structure has not been examined in Japan. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the construct validity of the FAI for non-stroke community-dwelling elderly in Japan. The study subjects were 1,323 randomly selected community older residents in Hojo city, Ehime prefecture, the southern part of Japan. In order to investigate the construct validation, we performed factor analyses, i.e., exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. Furthermore, we examined the influences of age and gender on the FAI constructs. In the results, the FAI had a two-factor structure consisting of domestic chores, including washing clothes and preparing meals, and work and leisure, including gardening, driving and outings. Younger age was significantly related to increased performance on both factors. In addition, relative to females, males had a lower performance on the domestic chores and a greater performance on the work and leisure. These results suggest that the FAI satisfies the construct validity in the Japanese community-dwelling elderly. The FAI and its two factors provide important and clinically valuable information for understanding the patterns of functional status in the Japanese community-dwelling elderly.View full abstractDownload PDF (387K) -
Arzu Yaren, Sebahat Turgut, Raziye Kursunluoglu, Ilhan Oztop, Gunfer T ...2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 109-116
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThe association between the polymorphism of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene and breast cancer risk has been extensively studied, however, the studies about the prognostic factors and ACE gene polymorphism are limited in number. Our aims were to analyze the distribution of the insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism of the ACE gene in Turkish premenopausal patients with breast cancer, which is more aggressive than the postmenopausal counterpart, and to assess whether DD genotype is associated with poor prognostic factors. The DD genotype has been shown to be associated with the increased serum and tissue levels of ACE, compared to those in II and ID genotypes. ACE genotypes were determined by polymerase chain reaction in 44 Turkish premenopausal patients with breast cancer and in 46 age-matched healthy premenopausal women. ACE genotypes are distributed in patients and control subjects as follows; DD is present in 25 (56.8%), ID in 17 (38.6%), and II in 2 (4.5%) patients, and DD in 28 (60.9%), ID in 12 (26.1%), and II in 6 (13.0%) healthy subjects, respectively. D and I alleles were found in 76.1% and 23.9% of the patients, while 73.9% and 26.1% in healthy subjects, respectively. In breast cancer patients, no significant association was observed between the ACE genotypes and poor prognostic factors, such as negative hormone receptor status, histological grade, lymph node involvement, higher number of lymph node metastases, and c-erb B2 overexpression, except that tumor size greater than 2 cm is associated with DD genotype (p = 0.02). Thus, ACE may influence the local tumor growth of breast cancer in premenopausal patients.View full abstractDownload PDF (323K) -
Xiumin Zhang, Kaori Matsuo, Arta Farmawati, Yohei Higashi, Kazuyuki Og ...2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 117-124
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThe circulating number of natural killer (NK) cells largely changes after an acute bout of physical exercise. Granulysin is a cytolytic granule protein with a broad range of antimicrobial and tumoricidal activities produced and released by human NK cells and cytolytic T lymphocytes. Since NK cells constitutively produce granulysin, most serum granulysin in healthy humans is derived from NK cells. Serum graulysin levels in the healthy humans may therefore reflect the size of whole-body NK cell population in the body. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of an acute bout of exhaustive exercise on serum granulysin in comparison with the circulating number of NK cells. Six healthy, young male volunteers participated in the study. Each subject underwent both exhaustive exercise and resting sessions in a random order with at least a seven-day interval. Subjects were asked to run to exhaustion on a treadmill with an incremental graded protocol. Blood samples were collected before, immediately after, and 1 hr, 3 hr, 6 hr, 12 hr and 24 hr after exercise. Serum granulysin levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). NK cells were determined by flow cytometry. Exhaustive exercise induced a 4.8-fold increase in peripheral blood NK cells, but no significant change in serum granulysin. Our results support the hypothesis that exhaustive exercise-induced changes in the circulating number of NK cells represent a redistribution of lymphocytes, rather than the change in the size of whole-body NK cell population.View full abstractDownload PDF (303K) -
Yasushi Onishi, Shin-Ichiro Mori, Akiko Higuchi, Sung-Won Kim, Takahir ...2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 125-135
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSCytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is an important cause of morbidity and mortality after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Therefore, preemptive ganciclovir therapy based on early detection of CMV reactivation is widely used to prevent CMV disease. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been widely used for monitoring CMV reactivation as well as the antigenemia assay that detects CMV structural phosphoprotein with a molecular weight of 65,000 (pp65). We developed a real-time PCR assay system for CMV based on a double-stranded DNA-specific dye, SYBR Green I, and quantified DNA, which was extracted automatically from plasma. This real-time PCR assay and the pp65 antigenemia assay were compared in parallel with 357 blood samples obtained from 64 patients who underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). Real-time PCR assay results correlated with those of the pp65 antigenemia assay (p < 0.0001). It is noteworthy that the detection of CMV DNA by PCR preceded the first positive antigenemia by 14 days. In this study, 10 of 64 patients developed CMV disease. The antigenemia assay detected CMV reactivation earlier than the development of CMV disease only in four of 10 patients. In contrast, our real-time PCR detected CMV-DNA before the development of CMV diseases in eight of 10 patients. The real-time PCR with SYBR Green I as a detection signal is simple and readily performed, and may be a useful system for early detection of CMV reactivation after allo-HSCT.View full abstractDownload PDF (450K) -
Seiichiro Nagai, Tadashi Mabuchi, Shuji Hirata, Tomoko Shoda, Tsuyoshi ...2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 137-144
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSSelection of good quality oocytes is important for improvement of assisted reproductive technology. Here, we studied the relationship of the mitochondrial distribution in metaphase II stage (MII) oocytes with fertility, since mitochondria in ooplasm are essential for energy production required for fertilization and embryo development. To observe mitochondria non-invasively, we used oocytes from a transgenic mouse, in which enhanced green fluorescent protein is targeted to the mitochondrial matrix and thus fluorescence is observed exclusively in the mitochondria. Control oocytes with mitochondria distributed around the nucleus showed normal embryo developmental competence, whereas oocytes with abnormal diffuse and fragmented mitochondria showed a significantly lower rate of embryo development after activation by intracytoplasmic sperm injection or strontium, which is a very effective agent for activation of mouse oocytes. Also, we showed that the reduced developmental competence of oocytes with diffuse and fragmented mitochondria caused by vitrification and thawing is similar to that of oocytes with abnormal mitochondrial foci obtained naturally. These findings suggest that abnormal mitochondrial distribution in oocytes at MII is a cause of developmental retardation and therefore normal mitochondrial distribution could be used as a criterion for selection of good oocytes.View full abstractDownload PDF (998K) -
Shigehiko Eto, Masato Isome, Hideki Sano, Yutaka Fukuda, Yukihiko Kawa ...2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 145-151
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSPolyamines play an essential role in the growth and differentiation of mammalian cells. The depletion of intracellular polyamines results in the suppression of growth. Proliferation of glomerular mesangial cells (MC) is the most common pathologic change in many forms of glomerulonephritis. Agmatine is a metabolite of arginine via arginine decarboxylase (ADC), highly expressed in the kidney, and unique in its capacity to suppress intracellular polyamine levels required for proliferation. As agmatine enters mammalian cells via the polyamine transport system, its antiproliferative effects may preferentially target cells with increased proliferative kinetics. In the present study, we evaluated the antiproliferative effects of agmatine on human MC in vitro. MC proliferation was stimulated with 20% fetal bovine serum (FBS) or platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF-BB, 20 ng/ml). Cell proliferation was measured using the (4.3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) (MTT) proliferation assay. Intracellular polyamine levels were assayed by high performance liquid chromatography, and cell death was assessed by cellular DNA fragmentation enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The MTT proliferation assay showed that agmatine significantly suppressed proliferation of human MC treated with 20% FBS or 5% FBS + PDGF as compared to human MC treated with 5% FBS. Polyamine levels were markedly lower in cells treated with agmatine, and proliferation was rescued by administration of putrescine. The fragmented DNA was hardly detected in agmatine-treated human MC. In summary, human MC stimulated to increase their proliferative kinetics are significantly more sensitive to the antiproliferative effects of agmatine than normally cultured cells. Suppressed proliferation of the agmatine-treated human MC is not due to increased cell death. These results suggest that agmatine is a promising drug candidate for the treatment of human mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis.View full abstractDownload PDF (272K) -
Zerrin Ozkose, Figen Sunay Demir, Kutluk Pampal, Sahin Yardim2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 153-160
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThe α2-agonist dexmedetomidine (Dex), a sedative and analgesic, reduces heart rate (HR) and blood pressure, and has been used in the practice of anesthesia. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effects of Dex on hemodynamic variables, anesthetic sparing effects, and recovery profiles in patients who underwent surgery in prone position. The prone position itself can cause a decrease in the systemic blood pressure. Forty patients who undergo lumbar discectomy were randomly assigned to receive either Dex (a loading dose 1 μg/ kg in 10 minutes followed by an infusion rate of 0.2 μg/ kg/ hr) or saline. In both groups, the anesthesia was induced with fentanyl, thiopental and rocuronium, and maintained with desflurane in 50% N2O. Mean arterial blood pressure (MAP), HR, cardiac output (CO), and level of anesthesia were monitored. Recovery times and analgesic requirements were also recorded. As a response to endotracheal intubation, a significant increase in MAP and HR was observed in the control group compared to the Dex group, but no difference in CO. The recovery times were significantly shorter in the Dex group compared to the control group. Anesthetic and analgesic requirements of the Dex group were lower than controls. Thus, the use of Dex caused no detrimental effects on the hemodynamic variables in prone position. In addition, Dex decreased pressure response to intubation, and anesthetic and analgesic requirements, shortened recovery times, and decreased postoperative pain level. Dex may be an alternative to currently used adjunctive anesthetic agents in lumbar discectomy operations.View full abstractDownload PDF (301K)
Case Reports
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Masaki Kumagai, Sohei Endo, Kazutaka Shiba, Toshiko Masaki, Akinori Ki ...2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 161-164
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSWe report a rare case of schwannoma arising from the retropharyngeal space. A 24-year-old man presented a 2-month-history of a foreign body sensation in the throat and gradually progressing dysphagia when he swallowed solids and liquids. The patient had no odynophagia, fever, or blood in his saliva. Computed tomographic scans and magnetic resonance images revealed a well-defined and oval mass, measuring about 40 mm × 20 mm in size, in the retropharyngeal space. Because the tumor existed in the retropharyngeal space and was the adequate size, the patient underwent trans-oral resection under the direct laryngoscope without the need for skin incision. On the basis of the histological findings, the tumor was diagnosed as a schwannoma. It was mostly composed of spindle cells arranged in short bundles and fascicles, with focal palisading of the nuclei. The neoplasm arising from the retropharyngeal space is quite rare, because of few anatomical structures in the space. The post-operative course was uneventful, and the patient is currently free from disease 30 months after surgery. Diagnosis, clinical behavior, and treatment of retropharyngeal schwannoma are reviewed from perusal of the literature. When schwannomas are located in the pharynx, they may cause foreign body sensation or dysphagia. Therefore, when a foreign body sensation in the larynx is present, a thorough diagnostic procedure should be performed to evaluate the morphology of the upper aerodigestive tract.View full abstractDownload PDF (542K) -
Yah Yee Ang, Kenji Kawano, Tatsuya Saito, Misato Kasai, Katsuhisa Iked ...2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 165-168
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSWe herein describe a case of 44-year old female who presented with a chief complaint of gustatory rhinorrhea from childhood, in which gustatory stimuli caused bilateral excessive, watery nasal secretion. No abnormality of taste acuity was observed. This disorder was presumably caused by faulty regenerated parasympathetic nerve fibers reaching the nasal mucosa or possibly, by a congenital condition. Nasal pretreatment with an anti-cholinergic drug clinically blocked the positive sugar-induced rhinorrhea, thus indicating that the gustatory rhinitis in this case was produced by foods that stimulate muscarinic receptors sensitive to atropine (probably on submucosal nasal glands). Although this syndrome can be treated prophylactically by the use of topical atropine, the patient preferred to undergo radical therapy and a resection of the posterior nasal nerve was performed through the middle meatus under endoscopic control. The resection of the nerve on both sides resulted in an almost complete inhibition of the sugar-induced rhinorrhea without serious complications. Although this disease is not life-threatening, it is socially embarrassing and troublesome to patients and surgical therapy is one of the accepted modalities.View full abstractDownload PDF (205K) -
Tansel Ansal Balci, Ismail Ciftci, Nimet Kabakus, Mustafa Aydin2006 Volume 210 Issue 2 Pages 169-173
Published: 2006
Released on J-STAGE: October 05, 2006
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSFragile X syndrome (FXS) is known as the most common form of inherited mental retardation. In our study, brain perfusion single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) was performed in a 6 year-old boy diagnosed with FXS. Diffuse bilateral uptake of Technetium-99m hexamethyl propylene amine oxime (99mTc-HMPAO) was noted in his orbits, as well as cortical perfusion defects (hypoperfusion in the right parietal and the left temporal lobe). Ophthalmologic examination showed no pathological findings. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed no abnormality in the orbital structures, although hypoplasia of cerebellum and vermis was visualized. Since the patient was crying during the injection, the increased blood flow or the increased metabolism of the eyes and/or ocular muscles may be responsible for this orbital finding. Alternatively, the enhanced uptake of HMPAO in the orbits may reflect the pathology associated with FXS, because patients with FXS might have visual-motor abnormalities. To the best of our knowledge, there has been no report documenting such an orbital uptake of HMPAO. Moreover, the visualization of decreased cerebral perfusion, with the normal findings of MRI, indicates that brain SPECT imaging with HMPAO is helpful for detecting brain abnormalities in children with FXS.View full abstractDownload PDF (409K)
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