Pneumatosis intestinalis leading to perioperative hypovolemic shock: Case report

Pneumatosis intestinalis (PI) is an uncommon disorder defined as multiple foci of gas within the intestinal wall. Despite recognition of an increasing number of cases of PI, the optimal management strategy, whether through surgical or other means, remains controversial. The present report describes the case of a patient with PI who underwent exploratory laparotomy without specific findings and who ultimately died due to extensive intestinal hemorrhage that was possibly triggered by surgery

The effects of nifekalant hydrochloride on the spatial dispersion of repolarization after direct current defibrillation in patients with oral amiodarone and β-blocker therapy

AbstractBackgroundAlthough nifekalant hydrochloride (NIF) has been demonstrated to suppress ventricular tachyarrhythmias, especially electrical storms, the mechanism by which it does so is still unclear. We examined the effects of NIF on the spatial dispersion of repolarization (SDR) after implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) shock.Methods and ResultsIn 35 patients with oral amiodarone and β-blocker therapy, and an ICD, we recorded the 87-lead electrocardiogram during sinus rhythm (CONTROL-1 group) under general anesthesia, and just after the termination of induced ventricular fibrillation (VF) by ICD shock, with or without NIF administration. In all recordings, the corrected QT interval (QTc) was measured in each lead. The dispersion of QTc (QTc-D; maximum QTc minus minimum QTc) was also measured. Compared with that in the CONTROL-1 group, the QTc-D exhibited significant deterioration after ICD shock (61±14 and 90±19ms1/2, respectively; p<0.05). However, after the termination of induced VF by ICD shock with NIF administration, the QTc-D did not differ significantly from that in the CONTROL-1 group (63±20 and 61±14ms1/2, respectively).ConclusionsNIF suppressed the deterioration of the SDR after ICD shock. This might be one of the mechanisms by which NIF suppresses recurrence of ventricular tachyarrhythmia just after ICD shock in patients with oral amiodarone and β-blocker therapy

FABRICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF TITANIA-NANOSHEET FILM BY ELECTROPHORETIC DEPOSITION TECHNIQUE

Two-dimensional nanosheets, such as graphene and some oxides, have been investigated because of their unique functional properties. Titania is known as a key material showing a photocatalytic activity as well as a superhydrophilicity by irradiation of ultraviolet light. General preparation method for titania nanosheets has already been reported by Sasaki et al. in 1998.[1] On the other hand, an electrophoretic deposition (EPD) process of colloidal particles in a suspension has been used in various systems in order to create some functional materials and/or devices. In this work, we demonstrate a fabrication of film consisting of titania nanosheet by the simple EPD technique. Titania-nanosheet aqueous suspension was prepared according to the previous report [1]. Dried titania nanosheet powder was obtained to avoid electrolysis of water during EPD process. The dried titania nanosheet powder dispersed in acetone was used as the suspension for the EPD process. The EPD was carried out a constant d.c. voltage mode of 20 V for 300 s. An indium-tin oxide (ITO)-coated glass and a stainless steel plate was used as the anode and cathode, respectively. The two electrodes placed parallel to each other in the suspension. The distance of the electrodes was fixed at 5 mm. The deposition area was set to be 13 mm x 8 mm. The electrophoretically-deposited film was characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM). Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor in a Patient with Neurofibromatosis: Abscess Formation in the Tumor Leading to Bacteremia and Seizure

A 66-year-old woman with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) was brought to the emergency room with seizures and high-grade fever. Seizure in adult NF1 patients raises concern for intracranial lesions. However, neurological examination and central nervous system imaging failed to detect any causative intracranial lesions for her seizure. Gram-positive cocci, Streptococcus anginosus, were detected by blood cultures. Abdominal computed tomography revealed a well-defined round mass 7 cm in diameter, which was found to be a small intestinal gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) containing an abscess. There was fistula formation between the intestinal lumen and the abscess, in which there were numerous Gram-positive cocci. The seizure may have been caused by hypoosmolality (hyponatremia and hypoproteinemia), which may result from decreased food intake associated with high-grade fever and general malaise. In this case GIST originating from the small intestine was invaded by S. anginosus through a fistula, leading to abscess formation, bacteremia, high-grade fever, and seizure, which was the first clinical manifestation

Design, Construction and Test of a Double Bitter Magnet

A Bitter magnet with concentric double coils is more efficient than a single-coil magnet especially at a high level of power consumption. The newly constructed double Bitter magnet has been tested up to the power of 3 MW. Some results of mechanical tests for conductor and insulator materials are also described

Design, Construction and Test of a Small Bitter Magnet usable for a Hybrid Magnet

A hybrid magnet is a combined system of an outer superconducting magnet and an inner high-power water-cooled magnet, generating continuous high magnetic fields. A small Bitter coil to be used for the latter magnet has been designed, constructed and tested up to the DC electric power of 3 MW and the deionized-water flow rate of 130 m^3/h. According to expectations, the field produced in a clear bore of 32 mm diameter has reached 12.4 T without an excessive temperature rise of the coil

SOCS-1/SSI-1-Deficient NKT Cells Participate in Severe Hepatitis through Dysregulated Cross-Talk Inhibition of IFN-γ and IL-4 Signaling In Vivo

AbstractSuppressor of cytokine signaling-1 (SOCS-1), also known as STAT-induced STAT inhibitor-1 (SSI-1), is a negative feedback molecule for cytokine signaling, and its in vivo deletion induces fulminant hepatitis. However, elimination of the STAT1 or STAT6 gene or deletion of NKT cells substantially prevented severe hepatitis in SOCS-1-deficient mice, while administration of IFN-γ and IL-4 accelerated its development. SOCS-1 deficiency not only sustained IFN-γ/IL-4 signaling but also eliminated the cross-inhibitory action of IFN-γ on IL-4 signaling. These results suggest that SOCS-1 deficiency-induced persistent activation of STAT1 and STAT6, which would be inhibited by SOCS-1 under normal conditions, may induce abnormal activation of NKT cells, thus leading to lethal pathological changes in SOCS-1-deficient mice

The crystal structure of the plant small GTPase OsRac1 reveals its mode of binding to NADPH oxidase

This research was originally published in Journal of Biological Chemistry. Ken-ichi Kosami, Izuru Ohki, Minoru Nagano, Kyoko Furuita, Toshihiko Sugiki, Yoji Kawano, Tsutomu Kawasaki, Toshimichi Fujiwara, Atsushi Nakagawa, Ko Shimamoto and Chojiro Kojima. The crystal structure of the plant small GTPase OsRac1 reveals its mode of binding to NADPH oxidase. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2014; 289, 28569-28578. © the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology