Duodenum-Preserving Resection of the Head of the Pancreas: The Significance as a Diagnostic Therapy for the Lesion in the Pancreatic Head

A 75-year-old man who was diagnosed as having mucin-producing pancreatic cystic lesion ofthe main pancreatic duct by duodenoscopic examination was reported. Because of the low malignant potential of such lesions, duodenum-preserving resection of the head of the pancreas was performed, and the intra-operative histological examination showed no malig-nancy of the resected pancreatic head and no other surgical procedures, such as lymph-adenectomy nor pancreato-duodenectomy were necessary. The significance of this case report lies in that a less invasive operation should be selected at first to diagnose whether the lesion is malignant or not, and als0 that the selected operation itself must be sufficient to resect an adequate part of the pancreatic tissue involving the cystic lesion, ifnot malignant. Here, we report the process to select the procedure and the surgical technique

A study of incremental sheet forming by using water jet

In this work, a variant of the incremental sheet forming (ISF) process, namely the incremental sheet forming by using water jet (ISF-WJ), was studied. In the investigation, an ISF-WJ prototype machine was designed and developed. Different design concepts of the water jet nozzle were proposed and evaluated to achieve the maximum forming pressure by performing computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations. Based on the forming pressure distribution modeled by CFD simulations, finite element (FE) models were developed to study the sheet deformation behavior under the ISF-WJ process condition. Based on the understanding gained from the numerical study, experiments were conducted to validate the ISF-WJ process and the developed prototype machine. The results suggest that ISF-WJ is a feasible process to achieve improved surface finish of thin sheet parts. In addition, this study has found that water jet pressure plays an important role in preventing sheet wrinkling and obtaining an accurate geometry of formed parts

Real-time In Situ Electron Spin Resonance Measurements on Fungal Spores of Penicillium digitatum during Exposure of Oxygen Plasmas

We report the kinetic analysis of free radicals on fungal spores of Penicillium digitatum interacted with atomic oxygen generated plasma electric discharge using real time in situ electron spin resonance (ESR) measurements. We have obtained information that the ESR signal from the spores was observed and preliminarily assignable to semiquinone radical with a g-value of around 2.004 and a line width of approximately 5G. The decay of the signal is possibly linked to the inactivation of the fungal spore. The real-time in situ ESR has proven to be a useful method to elucidate plasma-induced surface reactions on biological specimens.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figure

Association between asymptomatic hyperuricemia and new-onset chronic kidney disease in Japanese male workers: a long-term retrospective cohort study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hyperuricemia is prevalent in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). We explored the hypothesis that asymptmatic hyperuricemia may be associated with new-onset CKD.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The participants were all male factory workers in Kanagawa, Japan (n = 1,285). All were over 40 years of age and had undergone annual health examinations from 1990 to 2007. Individuals with a history of gouty attacks were excluded from the study. A retrospective cohort study was conducted by following the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) for each participant over a maximum period of 18 years. The endpoint was new-onset CKD defined as eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m². The associations between new-onset CKD and the presence of hyperuricemia, low serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, hypertension, diabetes, and obesity were analyzed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The mean (± standard deviation) follow-up period was 95.2 (± 66.7) months, and new-onset CKD was observed in 100 participants (7.8%) during this follow-up. Cox proportional hazards model revealed that the hazard ratio of new-onset CKD due to hyperuricemia, low serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, hypertension and obesity were 3.99 (95% confidence interval: 2.59-6.15), 1.69 (1.00-2.86), 2.00 (1.29-3.11) and 1.35 (0.87-2.10), respectively. Concerning hyperuricemia, low serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, hypertension and obesity, the log-rank tests showed <it>P </it>values of < 0.01, 0.01, < 0.01 and < 0.01, respectively.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The results of this study suggest that asymptomatic hyperuricemia is a predictive factor for new-onset CKD for Japanese male workers.</p

Prevalence of chronic kidney disease in Thai adults: a national health survey

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The prevalence of patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) who need dialysis and/or transplantation has more than doubled in Thailand during the past two decades. It has been suggested that therapeutic strategies to reduce the risk of ESRD and other complications in CKD are now available, thus the early recognition and the institution of proven therapeutic strategies are important and beneficial. We, therefore, aimed to determine the prevalence of CKD in Thai adults from the National Health Examination Survey of 2004.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data from a nationally representative sample of 3,117 individuals aged 15 years and older was collected using questionnaires, physical examination and blood samples. Serum creatinine was measured by Jaffé method. GFR was estimated using the Chinese modified Modification of Diet in Renal Disease Study equation. Chronic kidney Disease (CKD) stages were classified based on Kidney Disease Outcome Quality Initiative (K/DOQI).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The prevalence of CKD in Thai adults weighted to the 2004 Thai population by stage was 8.1% for stage 3, 0.2% and 0.15% for stage 4 and 5 respectively. Compared to non-CKD, individuals with CKD were older, had a higher level of cholesterol, and higher blood pressure. Those with cardiovascular risk factors were more likely to have CKD (stage 3-5) than those without, including hypertension (OR 1.6, 95%CI 1.1, 3.4), diabetes (OR 1.87, 95%CI 1.0, 3.4). CKD was more common in northeast (OR 2.1, 95%CI 1.3, 3.3) compared to central region. Urinalysis was not performed, therefore, we could not have data on CKD stage 1 and 2. We have no specific GFR formula for Thai population.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The identification of CKD patients should be evaluated and monitored for appropriate intervention for progression to kidney disease from this screening.</p