QOL after RT or OP for uterine cervix cancer

This study aimed to research the post-treatment quality of life (QOL) between radiotherapy (RT)- and operation (OP)-treated early cervical cancer survivors, using separate questionnaires for physicians and patients. We administered an observational questionnaire to patients aged 20–70 years old with Stages IB1–IIB cervical cancer who had undergone RT or OP and without recurrence as outpatients for ≥6 months after treatment. We divided 100 registered patients equally into two treatment groups (n = 50 each). The average age was 53 and 44 years in the RT and OP groups, respectively. The RT group included 34 and 66% Stage I and II patients, respectively, whereas the OP group included 66 and 34% Stage I and II patients, respectively. The OP group included 58% of patients with postoperative RT. Combination chemotherapy was performed in 84 and 48% of patients in the RT and OP groups, respectively. On the physicians’ questionnaire, we observed significant differences in bone marrow suppression (RT) and leg edema (OP). On the patients’ questionnaire, significantly more patients had dysuria and leg edema in the OP group than in the RT group, and severe (Score 4–5) leg edema was significantly higher in the post-operative RT group than in the OP only group. The frequency of sexual intercourse decreased after treatment in both groups. On the patients’ questionnaire, there were no significant differences between the two groups regarding sexual activity. These findings are useful to patients and physicians for shared decision-making in treatment choices. The guidance of everyday life and health information including sexual life after treatment is important

Use of the index of pulmonary vascular disease for predicting long-term outcome of pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with congenital heart disease

AimsLimited data exist on risk factors for the long-term outcome of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) associated with congenital heart disease (CHD-PAH). We focused on the index of pulmonary vascular disease (IPVD), an assessment system for pulmonary artery pathology specimens. The IPVD classifies pulmonary vascular lesions into four categories based on severity: (1) no intimal thickening, (2) cellular thickening of the intima, (3) fibrous thickening of the intima, and (4) destruction of the tunica media, with the overall grade expressed as an additive mean of these scores. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between IPVD and the long-term outcome of CHD-PAH.MethodsThis retrospective study examined lung pathology images of 764 patients with CHD-PAH aged <20 years whose lung specimens were submitted to the Japanese Research Institute of Pulmonary Vasculature for pulmonary pathological review between 2001 and 2020. Clinical information was collected retrospectively by each attending physician. The primary endpoint was cardiovascular death.ResultsThe 5-year, 10-year, 15-year, and 20-year cardiovascular death-free survival rates for all patients were 92.0%, 90.4%, 87.3%, and 86.1%, respectively. The group with an IPVD of ≥2.0 had significantly poorer survival than the group with an IPVD <2.0 (P = .037). The Cox proportional hazards model adjusted for the presence of congenital anomaly syndromes associated with pulmonary hypertension, and age at lung biopsy showed similar results (hazard ratio 4.46; 95% confidence interval: 1.45–13.73; P = .009).ConclusionsThe IPVD scoring system is useful for predicting the long-term outcome of CHD-PAH. For patients with an IPVD of ≥2.0, treatment strategies, including choosing palliative procedures such as pulmonary artery banding to restrict pulmonary blood flow and postponement of intracardiac repair, should be more carefully considered

Coordinated Respiratory Motor Activity in Nerves Innervating the Upper Airway Muscles in Rats.

Maintaining the patency of the upper airway during breathing is of vital importance. The activity of various muscles is related to the patency of the upper airway. In the present study, we examined the respiratory motor activity in the efferent nerves innervating the upper airway muscles to determine the movements of the upper airway during respiration under normocapnic conditions (pH = 7.4) and in hypercapnic acidosis (pH = 7.2). Experiments were performed on arterially perfused decerebrate rats aged between postnatal days 21-35. We recorded the efferent nerve activity in a branch of the cervical spinal nerve innervating the infrahyoid muscles (CN), the hypoglossal nerve (HGN), the external branch of the superior laryngeal nerve (SLN), and the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) with the phrenic nerve (PN). Inspiratory nerve discharges were observed in all these nerves under normocapnic conditions. The onset of inspiratory discharges in the CN and HGN was slightly prior to those in the SLN and RLN. When the CO2 concentration in the perfusate was increased from 5% to 8% to prepare for hypercapnic acidosis, the peak amplitudes of the inspiratory discharges in all the recorded nerves were increased. Moreover, hypercapnic acidosis induced pre-inspiratory discharges in the CN, HGN, SLN, and RLN. The onset of pre-inspiratory discharges in the CN, HGN, and SLN was prior to that of discharges in the RLN. These results suggest that the securing of the airway that occurs a certain time before dilation of the glottis may facilitate ventilation and improve hypercapnic acidosis

Voxel-wise correlations between cognition and cerebral blood flow using arterial spin-labeled perfusion MRI in patients with Alzheimer’s disease: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Background To analyze voxel-wise correlation between cerebral blood flow (CBF) measured using ASL-MRI and cognition in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Methods Forty-one patients diagnosed with AD or mild cognitive impairment due to AD were recruited for this study. CBF images were obtained using ASL-MRI (n = 41) with a post-labeling delay (PLD) of 1.5 and 2.5 s (PLD1.5 and PLD2.5, respectively) using a 3 T scanner, in addition to brain perfusion SPECT with N-isopropyl-4-[I-123]iodoamphetamine (n = 28). Voxel-based analyses were performed for ASL-MRI and SPECT using Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores as covariates. Differences in CBF between PLD1.5 and PLD2.5 were assessed using a paired t-test with SPM12. Results Significant positive correlations were observed between MMSE scores and CBF at PLD1.5 in the right posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), and both temporo-parietal association cortexes. At PLD2.5, significant positive correlations were determined for MMSE scores and CBF in the superior parietal lobule and the right temporo-parietal association cortex. SPECT showed significant positive correlations in the PCC and both temporo-parietal association cortexes (right-side dominant). PLD1.5 showed significantly higher CBF than PLD2.5 in the proximal areas of vascular territories of the anterior, middle, and posterior cerebral arteries. Conclusions Significant positive correlations in CBF, measured with both ASL-MRI and SPECT, with cognition were found in the PCC and temporo-parietal association cortexes. PLD1.5 and PLD2.5 showed similar correlations with cognition, although the CBF images had significant differences

Correlation between abdominal nerve (AbN) activity and CN activity.

<p>(A) Original and integrated traces of AbN, CN, and PN activity during normocapnia (5% CO₂, 95% O₂), hypercapnia (8% CO₂, 92% O₂), and recovery (5% CO₂, 95% O₂). (B) Traces averaged from consecutive integrated sweeps for 1 min in the preparation shown in (A). The filled arrowheads show the onset of nerve discharges. (C) Comparison of the duration of the AbN pre-I discharge, CN pre-I discharge, and respiratory cycle in the preparation shown in (A). Black bars show the times that the traces in (A) were recorded. The black arrow shows the time point at which the respiratory duration became shortest. The white arrow shows the time point at which the abdominal discharge appeared. (D) Correlation between the duration of the CN pre-I phase discharge and duration of the AbN pre-I discharge in the preparation shown in (A).</p

The discharge patterns of the CN, SLN, RLN, and HGN under normocapnic conditions.

<p>Averaged traces from two preparations shown in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0166436#pone.0166436.g001" target="_blank">Fig 1</a> were normalized via the peak amplitude.</p

Respiratory motor activity under normocapnic conditions and hypercapnic acidosis.

<p>(A) Original and integrated traces of CN, SLN, RLN, and PN activity during normocapnia (5% CO₂, 95% O₂), hypercapnia (8% CO₂, 92% O₂), and recovery (5% CO₂, 95% O₂). (B) Traces averaged from consecutive integrated sweeps for 1 min in the preparation shown in (A). The black and gray traces show the averaged traces during hypercapnia and normocapnia, respectively. The filled arrowheads show the onset of the nerve discharges. The open arrowheads show the pre-inspiration (pre-I) discharges. ‘<i>I</i>’ and ‘<i>E</i>’ demonstrate the inspiratory and expiratory phases, respectively. (C) Original and integrated traces of the CN, SLN, HGN, and PN activity obtained from a different preparation from (A). (D) Traces averaged from consecutive integrated sweeps for 1 min in the preparation shown in (C).</p

Comparison of variables of PN activity during normocapnia (5% CO₂) and hypercapnia (8% CO₂) (<i>n</i> = 21).

<p>Comparison of variables of PN activity during normocapnia (5% CO₂) and hypercapnia (8% CO₂) (<i>n</i> = 21).</p