Global Thrombosis Test - a possible monitoring system for the effects and safety of dabigatran

© Otsui et al. 2015BACKGROUND: Dabigatran is an alternative to warfarin (WF) for the thromboprophylaxis of stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). The advantage of dabigatran over WF is that monitoring is not required; however, a method to monitor the effect and the safety of dabigatran is not currently available. The Global Thrombosis Test (GTT) is a novel method to assess both clot formation and lysis activities under physiological conditions. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate whether treatment with dabigatran might affect shear-induced thrombi (occlusion time [OT], sec) by the GTT, and to investigate the possibility that the GTT could be useful as a monitoring system for dabigatran. PATIENTS/METHODS: The study population consisted of 50 volunteers and 43 NVAF patients on WF therapy, who were subsequently switched to dabigatran. Using the GTT, the thrombotic status was assessed one day before and 1 month after switching anticoagulation from WF to dabigatran. RESULTS: The OT was 524.9 ± 17.0 sec in volunteers whereas that of NVAF patients on WF therapy was 581.7 ± 26.3 sec. The switch from WF to dabigatran significantly prolonged OT (784.5 ± 19.3 sec). One patient on WF therapy and 12 patients on dabigatran therapy were shown to have OT > 900 sec. CONCLUSION: The GTT could be used to assess the risk of dabigatran-related bleeding complications.Peer reviewe

Anti-Interleukin-6 Receptor Antibody Therapy-Induced Retinopathy in a Patient with Rheumatoid Arthritis

Tocilizumab, a humanized anti-human interleukin-6 (IL-6) receptor monoclonal antibody, is beneficial for treating autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The most common adverse event is upper respiratory tract infection; ocular side effects are rare. We describe a case of skin ulceration and bilateral retinopathy with multifocal cotton-wool spots and retinal hemorrhages in a patient with RA treated with tocilizumab. Tocilizumab administration increased the serum level of IL-6 without affecting the IL-8 levels. We could not exclude the possibility of blood coagulation or retinal vascular changes caused by tocilizumab. The current case highlights the need to consider that ocular adverse effects can develop in patients treated with tocilizumab

小学校における音楽の授業の必要性について―歌唱を中心とした教育法及び指導法―

　学校教育の中で音楽の授業というのは必要性があるのか問われることがある。主要教科に対して副教科と区別されているだけでなく、将来何の役に立つのかと実際現場で生徒が口にしているのを耳にすることがある。しかしながら、学校の音楽の授業では、単なる知識や技能だけでなく、表現することによって子どもたちの感受性を養い、心を豊かにするという人間形成の部分では非常に重要な教科であると言える。中でも小学校はこれから学校で音楽を学んでいく上では土台づくりとしてもとても大事な時期である。　本論文では、小学校における音楽の授業の必要性を分析するだけでなく、音楽科教員として大切なことや音楽の授業の指導で必要なことを検討する。The class of the music may be called into question in school education whether there is the need. Not only it is distinguished from a vice-subject for main subjects, but also may hear what, actually, a student eats on the site in the future what it is useful for. However, by the class of the music of the school, I develop the sensitivity of children as well as simple knowledge and skill by expressing it, and it may be said that it is the subject that is very important in the part of the human being formation to do a heart wealthily. Above all, the elementary school is the time when they are very important as the making of base in learning music at school from now on. Not only, in this article, I analyze the need of the class of the music in the elementary school, but also consider whether it is necessary for the instruction of the class of important thing and the music as a music department teacher

Near-optimal stochastic MIMO signal detection with a mixture of t-distribution prior

Multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems will play a crucial role in future wireless communication, but improving their signal detection performance to increase transmission efficiency remains a challenge. To address this issue, we propose extending the discrete signal detection problem in MIMO systems to a continuous one and applying the Hamiltonian Monte Carlo method, an efficient Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm. In our previous studies, we have used a mixture of normal distributions for the prior distribution. In this study, we propose using a mixture of t-distributions, which further improves detection performance. Based on our theoretical analysis and computer simulations, the proposed method can achieve near-optimal signal detection with polynomial computational complexity. This high-performance and practical MIMO signal detection could contribute to the development of the 6th-generation mobile network.Comment: to be published in the 2023 IEEE Global Communications Conference (GLOBECOM

日本語における慣用句の逸脱使用がもつ言語機能 : 形容詞の反義語への置き換えを手がかりに

Tohoku University会議名: 言語資源活用ワークショップ2018, 開催地: 国立国語研究所, 会期: 2018年9月4日-5日, 主催: 国立国語研究所 コーパス開発センター「食が細い」という慣用句に対して「食が太い」のような言い方は一般に認められないが、文学作品や広告などにおいて言葉遊びとして用いられることがある。本稿では『国語研日本語ウェブコーパス(NWJC)』を用いた調査から、こうした逸脱的な言い回しが特殊な修辞的技巧をもたない人々にも多く用いられることを示し、その対人的機能について考察する

幼児が音楽を通して表現することについて―歌唱やリトミックによる幼児の音楽表現―

　幼児が成長していく過程の中で、自己表現することはとても大切である。人間は生まれた時から泣くという表現方法をもっており、心身が成長していくとともに目や耳、そして心で物事を理解し、言葉を発するなどの表現の仕方を学んでいく。その中で、自分で感じたことや考えたことを自分なりに表現することは、社会で生きていく上では必要不可欠である。そのために、表現することに深く密接している音楽が加わることによって、より豊かな感性や表現する力を育むことができると考えられる。　本論文では、幼児が音楽を通して表現することの意味を探り、歌唱やリトミックによる幼児の音楽表現において、保育者としてどのように指導するべきかを検討する。In the process when an infant grows up, the self-thing expressing is very important. The human being has an expression method to cry since I was born and mind and body grow up and understand things for eyes and an ear and a heart and learn a way of the expression such as giving off words. It is essential to express what I felt by oneself in that and that I thought for oneself in social, living. Therefore it is thought that I can bring up richer sensitivity and power to express by the music that is very close in expressing it deeply increasing. In this article, I investigate the meaning of an infant expressing it through music and, in the song and the music expression of the infant by the eurhythmics, consider how I should instruct it as a childminder

Angiogenic factors and their soluble receptors predict organ dysfunction and mortality in post-cardiac arrest syndrome

INTRODUCTION: Post-cardiac arrest syndrome (PCAS) often leads to multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) with a poor prognosis. Endothelial and leukocyte activation after whole-body ischemia/reperfusion following resuscitation from cardiac arrest is a critical step in endothelial injury and related organ damage. Angiogenic factors, including vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and angiopoietin (Ang), and their receptors play crucial roles in endothelial growth, survival signals, pathological angiogenesis and microvascular permeability. The aim of this study was to confirm the efficacy of angiogenic factors and their soluble receptors in predicting organ dysfunction and mortality in patients with PCAS. METHODS: A total of 52 resuscitated patients were divided into two subgroups: 23 survivors and 29 non-survivors. The serum levels of VEGF, soluble VEGF receptor (sVEGFR)1, sVEGFR2, Ang1, Ang2 and soluble Tie2 (sTie2) were measured at the time of admission (Day 1) and on Day 3 and Day 5. The ratio of Ang2 to Ang1 (Ang2/Ang1) was also calculated. This study compared the levels of angiogenic factors and their soluble receptors between survivors and non-survivors, and evaluated the predictive value of these factors for organ dysfunction and 28-day mortality. RESULTS: The non-survivors demonstrated more severe degrees of organ dysfunction and a higher prevalence of MODS. Non-survivors showed significant increases in the Ang2 levels and the Ang2/Ang1 ratios compared to survivors. A stepwise logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the Ang2 levels or the Ang2/Ang1 ratios on Day 1 independently predicted the 28-day mortality. The receiver operating characteristic curves of the Ang2 levels, and the Ang2/Ang1 ratios on Day 1 were good predictors of 28-day mortality. The Ang2 levels also independently predicted increases in the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores. CONCLUSIONS: We observed a marked imbalance between Ang1 and Ang2 in favor of Ang2 in PCAS patients, and the effect was more prominent in non-survivors. Angiogenic factors and their soluble receptors, particularly Ang2 and Ang2/Ang1, are considered to be valuable predictive biomarkers in the development of organ dysfunction and poor outcomes in PCAS patients