Multi-modal Mapping of the Face Selective Ventral Temporal Cortex-A Group Study With Clinical Implications for ECS, ECoG, and fMRI （複数手法による側頭葉腹側皮質の顔認知機能マッピング-脳皮質刺激、皮質脳波、機能的MRIの臨床的意義を検討するためのグループ研究）

Face recognition is impaired in patients with prosopagnosia, which may occur as a side effect of neurosurgical procedures. Face selective regions on the ventral temporal cortex have been localized with electrical cortical stimulation (ECS), electrocorticography (ECoG), and functional magnetic resonance imagining (fMRI). This is the first group study using within-patient comparisons to validate face selective regions mapping, utilizing the aforementioned modalities. Five patients underwent surgical treatment of intractable epilepsy and joined the study. Subdural grid electrodes were implanted on their ventral temporal cortices to localize seizure foci and face selective regions as part of the functional mapping protocol. Face selective regions were identified in all patients with fMRI, four patients with ECoG, and two patients with ECS. From 177 tested electrode locations in the region of interest (ROI), which is defined by the fusiform gyrus and the inferior temporal gyrus, 54 face locations were identified by at least one modality in all patients. fMRI mapping showed the highest detection rate, revealing 70.4% for face selective locations, whereas ECoG and ECS identified 64.8 and 31.5%, respectively. Thus, 28 face locations were co-localized by at least two modalities, with detection rates of 89.3% for fMRI, 85.7% for ECoG and 53.6 % for ECS. All five patients had no face recognition deficits after surgery, even though five of the face selective locations, one obtained by ECoG and the other four by fMRI, were within 10 mm to the resected volumes. Moreover, fMRI included a quite large volume artifact on the ventral temporal cortex in the ROI from the anatomical structures of the temporal base. In conclusion, ECS was not sensitive in several patients, whereas ECoG and fMRI even showed activation within 10 mm to the resected volumes. Considering the potential signal drop-out in fMRI makes ECoG the most reliable tool to identify face selective locations in this study. A multimodal approach can improve the specificity of ECoG and fMRI, while simultaneously minimizing the number of required ECS sessions. Hence, all modalities should be considered in a clinical mapping protocol entailing combined results of co-localized face selective locations.博士（医学）旭川医科大

Knee dynamics during take-off and landing in spike jumps performed by volleyball players with patellar tendinopathy （膝蓋腱炎の発症したバレーボール選手のスパイクジャンプにおける踏切と着地時の膝関節の動力学的解析）

[Purpose] Patellar tendinopathy is a common sports injury. The risk factors for this injury can be categorized as intrinsic, extrinsic, and dynamic. We examined the dynamic factors in this study. [Participants and Methods] The participants were volleyball players who were assigned to a patient group (n=6) if they had medial patellar tendinopathy in the left knee or to a control group (n=7) otherwise. The participants performed spike jumps, and their ground reaction force and three-dimensional kinematic data were recorded. Knee angle and moment data were extracted at the peak extension moment of take-off and landing. [Results] The two groups showed no differences in knee angles. A tendency for abduction/external rotation moments at take-off and landing on both sides was observed in the control group, while the patient group showed adduction and internal rotation moments at take-off and adduction moment at landing in the left (injured) knee. [Conclusion] The observed knee joint moments in the left (injured) knee of the patient group may have been involved in the pathophysiological mechanism underlying the development of patellar tendinopathy.博士（医学）旭川医科大

Comparison of intrathecal morphine with continuous patient-controlled epidural anesthesia versus intrathecal morphine alone for post-cesarean section analgesia:a randomized controlled trial （髄腔内モルヒネと持続的自己調節硬膜外麻酔の併用および髄腔内モルヒネ単独の帝王切開後痛の比較：ランダム化比較試験）

Background: Several neuraxial techniques have demonstrated effective post-cesarean section analgesia. According to previous reports, it is likely that patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA) without opioids is inferior to intrathecal morphine (IM) alone for post-cesarean section analgesia. However, little is known whether adding PCEA to IM is effective or not. The aim of this study was to compare post-cesarean section analgesia between IM with PCEA and IM alone. Methods: Fifty patients undergoing elective cesarean section were enrolled in this prospective randomized study. Patients were randomized to one of two groups: IM group and IM + PCEA group. All patients received spinal anesthesia with 12 mg of 0.5% hyperbaric bupivacaine, 10 μg of fentanyl, and 150 μg of morphine. Patients in IM + PCEA group received epidural catheterization through Th11-12 or Th12-L1 before spinal anesthesia and PCEA (basal 0.167% levobupivacaine infusion rate of 6 mL/h, bolus dose of 3 mL in lockout interval of 30 min) was commenced at the end of surgery. A numerical rating scale (NRS) at rest and on movement at 4,8,12,24,48 h after the intrathecal administration of morphine were recorded. In addition, we recorded the incidence of delayed ambulation and the number of patients who requested rescue analgesics. We examined NRS using Bonferroni's multiple comparison test following repeated measures analysis of variance; p < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: Twenty-three patients in each group were finally analyzed. Mean NRS at rest was significantly higher in IM group than in IM + PCEA group at 4 (2.7 vs 0.6), 8 (2.2 vs 0.6), and 12 h (2.5 vs 0.7), and NRS during mobilization was significantly higher in IM group than in IM + PCEA group at 4 (4.9 vs 1.5), 8 (4.8 vs 1.9), 12 (4.9 vs 2), and 24 h (5.7 vs 3.5). The number of patients who required rescue analgesics during the first 24 h was significantly higher in IM group compared to IM + PCEA group. No significant difference was observed between the groups in incidence of delayed ambulation. Conclusions: The combined use of PCEA with IM provided better post-cesarean section analgesia compared to IM alone.博士（医学）旭川医科大

Macular Microvasculature and Associated Retinal Layer Thickness in Pediatric Amblyopia:Magnification-corrected Analyses （小児の弱視眼における黄斑部微小血管構造と網膜層厚：画像拡大率補正による解析）

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to characterize macular microvasculature and structural retinal layers using magnification-corrected optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) images in children with amblyopia. Methods: This prospective cross-sectional study included 22 children with unilateral amblyopia (4-11 years of age) receiving spectral-domain OCTA. Vessel densities in foveal and parafoveal regions of the superficial capillary plexus (SCP) and deep capillary plexus (DCP) were measured in amblyopic and fellow eyes using a customized image analysis program correcting the scale of retinal image with axial length. Iowa Reference Algorithms (Iowa Institute for Biomedical Imaging) were used to measure mean thickness values of 10 intra-retinal layers rescaled for image size correction. Results: Foveal and parafoveal vessel densities in amblyopic eyes were lower than that of the fellow eyes in the SCP (fovea: P = 0.006 and parafovea: P = 0.003) and the DCP (P = 0.024 and P = 0.025, respectively). Amblyopic eyes had significantly smaller foveal avascular zone (FAZ) area than fellow eyes (P < 0.001). There were significant differences in retinal layer thickness between paired eyes, particularly in the inner retina in both foveal and parafoveal regions; retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) (P = 0.024 and P = 0.095, respectively), ganglion cell layer (P < 0.001 and P = 0.008), inner plexiform layer (IPL; P = 0.12 and P = 0.037), inner nuclear layer (P = 0.005 and P = 0.005), and outer plexiform layer (OPL; P = 0.02 and P = 0.057), except in the foveal IPL, the parafoveal RNFL, and OPL. Conclusions: Unilateral amblyopic eyes demonstrate reduced macular vessel density and thicker inner retinal layers compared with fellow eyes even after correcting for image magnification. Changes in macular microvasculature and structural layers may offer valuable insights in the development of amblyopia.博士（医学）旭川医科大

The Association Between Intraoperative Objective Neuromuscular Monitoring and Rocuronium Consumption During Laparoscopic Abdominal Surgery: A Single-Center Retrospective Analysis (腹腔鏡下腹部手術における筋弛緩モニター使用の有無とロクロニウム投与量の関連性を調べた研究:単一施設後ろ向き研究)

Background Rocuronium consumption with or without intraoperative objective neuromuscular monitoring in clinical settings of unrestricted use of sugammadex and neuromuscular monitoring has not been reported earlier. The study aimed to investigate the association between the use of intraoperative objective neuromuscular monitoring and rocuronium consumption in patients undergoing laparoscopic abdominal surgery. Methods Data were collected by reviewing electronic medical records of patients who received laparoscopic abdominal surgery under general anesthesia with rocuronium and reversal with sugammadex at a university teaching hospital between May 2017 and April 2018. A multivariate linear regression model was developed to compare the amount of rocuronium consumption (mg) per weight (kg) per hour (mg/kg/h) between the group in which intraoperative objective neuromuscular monitoring was used (NMM+ group) and the group in which intraoperative neuromuscular monitoring was not used (NMM- group). Additionally, we performed an interaction test. Results A total of 429 patients were evaluated, with 371 patients (86%) included in the NMM+ group and 58 patients (14%) in the NMM- group. Log-transformed rocuronium consumption between the NMM+ group and NMM- group was not significantly different (back-transformed β coefficients [95% CI]: 1.080 [0.951-1.226]; P = 0.23). Male sex and body mass index (BMI) were independent factors associated with 15% (0.853 [0.788-0.924]; P < 0.001) and 3% (for every 1 kg/m2 increase in BMI) (0.971 [0.963-0.979]; P < 0.001) decrease in intraoperative rocuronium consumption, respectively. A significant interaction was detected only between the use of neuromuscular monitoring and age ≥65 years (β: 0.803 [0.662-0.974]; P = 0.026). Conclusions Although the use of intraoperative objective neuromuscular monitoring was not an individual factor influencing intraoperative rocuronium consumption, this retrospective study demonstrated that the use of intraoperative neuromuscular monitoring reduced rocuronium consumption for approximately 20% of elderly patients (age ≥65 years) undergoing laparoscopic abdominal surgery.博士（医学）旭川医科大