A case of strangulated ileus caused by internal hernia through a defect in the broad ligament of the uterus

A 41-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of lower abdominal pain. She had no history of laparotomy. An abdominal CT scan at the time of admission indicated closed-loop intestinal obstruction of the small intestine within the pelvis and deviation of the uterus to the right. We diagnosed this as a strangulated internal hernia and decided to conduct an emergency operation. The ileum had herniated through a defect in the broad ligament of the uterus. The strangulated intestinal loop, which was about 25cm long, was released, and the defect of the broad ligament was closed. The postoperative course was uneventful. The differential diagnosis of intestinal obstruction should include internal hernia, especially in the absence of a previous laparotomy. An abdominal CT scan is quite useful for the preoperative and prompt diagnosis of internal hernia through a defect in the broad ligament of the uterus

Impact of upgraded radiotherapy system on outcomes in postoperative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma patients

Background: This study was performed to evaluate the impact of upgrade of radiotherapy system, including launch of intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), on the therapeutic outcomes. Materials and methods: Patients with head and neck (H&N) squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) who underwent postoperative radiotherapy at our hospital between June 2009 and July 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. In July 2014, we converted the radiotherapy technique for these patients from a 3-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT) to IMRT, along with the adoption of a meticulous planning policy and a few advanced procedures, including online imaging guidance. Results: A total of 136 patients (57 treated with the previous system and 79 treated with the upgraded system) were reviewed. There were significantly more patients with extracapsular extension in the upgraded-system group than the previous-system group (p = 0.0021). There were significantly fewer patients with ≥ Grade 2 acute and late adverse events in the upgraded-system group than the previous-system group. The differences in progression-free survival (PFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DFFS), locoregional progression-free survival (LRPFS), and overall survival (OS) between the two groups were not statistically significant (p = 0.8962, 0.9926, 0.6244, and 0.4827, respectively). Multivariate analysis revealed that the upgrade had neither positive nor negative impact on survival outcomes. Extracapsular extension was independently associated with decreased LRPFS and OS (p = 0.0499 and 0.0392, respectively). Conclusions: The IMRT-centered upgrade was beneficial for the postoperative patients with H&N SCC, because survival outcomes were sustained with less toxicities.

Survey of Period Variations of Superhumps in SU UMa-Type Dwarf Novae

We systematically surveyed period variations of superhumps in SU UMa-type dwarf novae based on newly obtained data and past publications. In many systems, the evolution of superhump period are found to be composed of three distinct stages: early evolutionary stage with a longer superhump period, middle stage with systematically varying periods, final stage with a shorter, stable superhump period. During the middle stage, many systems with superhump periods less than 0.08 d show positive period derivatives. Contrary to the earlier claim, we found no clear evidence for variation of period derivatives between superoutburst of the same object. We present an interpretation that the lengthening of the superhump period is a result of outward propagation of the eccentricity wave and is limited by the radius near the tidal truncation. We interpret that late stage superhumps are rejuvenized excitation of 3:1 resonance when the superhumps in the outer disk is effectively quenched. Many of WZ Sge-type dwarf novae showed long-enduring superhumps during the post-superoutburst stage having periods longer than those during the main superoutburst. The period derivatives in WZ Sge-type dwarf novae are found to be strongly correlated with the fractional superhump excess, or consequently, mass ratio. WZ Sge-type dwarf novae with a long-lasting rebrightening or with multiple rebrightenings tend to have smaller period derivatives and are excellent candidate for the systems around or after the period minimum of evolution of cataclysmic variables (abridged).Comment: 239 pages, 225 figures, PASJ accepte

千葉県君津市川谷地域に露出する中部更新統柿ノ木台層から産出する冷湧水化石群集: その時空分布と共産する自生炭酸塩

金沢大学国際基幹教育院 GS教育系冷湧水性群集が房総半島の中部更新統柿ノ木台層の陸棚相から産出する．群集は，化学合成二枚貝類から排他的になり，著しく13Cに枯渇した自生炭酸塩と共産することから，AOM（嫌気的メタン酸化）に依存していたと考えられる．自生炭酸塩は巣穴壁面と巣穴周囲の堆積物中に沈殿し，巣穴からスナモグリ類の爪化石と糞化石が産出することから，これらはスナモグリ類の巣穴であると考えられる．スナモグリ類はメタン生成帯まで巣穴を堀り，海水を巣穴深部へ供給し，AOMを活性化させることによって巣穴中の硫化水素イオン濃度を上昇させた．溶存酸素濃度が高い巣穴浅部では，硫黄酸化菌が繁茂し，スナモグリ類の食糧となった．巣穴深部では，浮遊する生物源炭酸塩などを核とした針状アラゴナイトが重力方向に沈下して炭酸塩ジオペタル状構造を形成し，巣穴周囲の堆積物中では，リン酸イオン濃度の上昇により高Mgカルサイトが，また硫酸イオンの枯渇によりドロマイトが沈殿した．Cold-seep-dependent molluscan assemblages occur in the outer-shelf facies of the middle Pleistocene Kakinokidai Formation of the Kazusa Group, a forearc basin-fill sequence on the Pacific side of central Japan, in strata corresponding to the interval 707.6-667.0 ka. The assemblages consist exclusively of chemosymbiotic bivalves (lucinids, thyasirids, and solemyids) and are associated with 13C-depleted authigenic carbonates (δ13C = −61.60‰ to −10.96‰ VPDB), which suggest that their main carbon source was anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM). Authigenic carbonate precipitates are common on burrow walls (mainly acicular aragonite) and the surrounding sediments (mainly micritic high-Mg calcite and dolomite). The burrows are cylindrical, 1.5-3.0 cm in diameter, and >1 m long. Callianassid claws and the trace fossil Palaxius (probable callianassid fecal pellets) in the burrow carbonates suggest that the burrows were produced by sediment-dwelling callianassid decapods.\nWe propose the following formation mechanism of burrows and their related authigenic carbonates. Firstly, callianassids produced deep burrows, penetrating the AOM zone and reaching the methanogenic zone. Methane then seeped into the burrows and AOM occurred in its deeper parts, promoted by a supply of seawater via callianassid activity, resulting in an increase in the concentration of hydrogen sulfide ions. Thiobacteria flourished in the shallower parts of the burrows, which were enriched in dissolved oxygen, and provided a source of food for the callianassids. In the deeper parts of the burrows, acicular aragonite precipitated around suspended carbonate nuclei and sank to the bottoms of the burrows, forming geopetal-like carbonate structures. In the surrounding sediment, high-Mg calcite precipitated in response to an increase in the concentration of phosphate ions (due to the decomposition of organic matter), and dolomite precipitated in response to decreasing concentrations of sulfate ions (caused by active AOM)

Effect of near-threshold ionization on electron attachment in gaseous dielectrics

It has been predicted that near-threshold ionization (NTI) in a gaseous dielectric inhibits the development of electron avalanche when the gaseous dielectric has a sufficient capability for low-energy electron attachment. The NTI leaves little energy for the primary and secondary electrons involved in the ionization; thus, both electrons can be captured by dielectric gas molecules without further ionization. A computational estimation indicates that this process can occur in SF6