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Abstract Background To investigate the incidence of pulmonary embolism and risk factors for this condition after obstetric and gynecologic surgery, as well as the efficacy of intermittent pneumatic compression. Methods A total of 6,218 patients operated at Keio University Hospital excluding obstetric or infertility-related surgery and uterine cervical conization were evaluated retrospectively to determine the preventive effect of intermittent pneumatic compression on postoperative pulmonary embolism. Results Pulmonary embolism occurred in 42 patients (0.68%). Multivariate analysis showed that malignancy, blood transfusion, and a body mass index ≥25 kg/m2 or ≥28 kg/m2 were independent risk factors for postoperative pulmonary embolism. A significantly lower incidence of pulmonary embolism occurred in patients receiving pneumatic compression postoperatively versus those without it. Among gynecologic malignancies, endometrial cancer was a significant risk factor for pulmonary embolism. Conclusion Preventive measures, including intermittent pneumatic compression, should be taken to avoid postoperative pulmonary thromboembolism in the gynecology field.

Various types of displacement sensors, which measure position changes of object, have been developed depending on the type and shape of the object under measurement, measurement range of the amount of displacement, required accuracy, and application. We are developing a new type of displacement sensor that is image-based, capable of measuring changes in 6DOF (3D position and orientation) of an object simultaneously, and is compact and low-cost. This displacement sensor measures the 6DOF of an object using images obtained by a monocular vision system. To confirm the usefulness of the proposed method, experimental measurements were conducted using a simple and inexpensive optical system. In this experiment, we were able to accurately measure changes of about 0.25 mm in displacement and 0.1 deg in inclination of the object at a distance of a few centimeters, and thus confirming the usefulness of the proposed method.

In this article we discuss the influence of age on the vestibulo-ocular reflex in a comparison of data from different age groups. In order to examine the influence of age, the pendular rotation test was performed in 25 otoneurologically healthy subjects and 12 patients with unilateral peripheral vestibular disorders, from 25 to 72 years of age. The subjects were divided into three groups: 20-39, 40-64 and older than 65 years. The stimulus modes were an amplitude and a frequency of 30 degrees at 0.25 Hz and of 60 degrees at 0.1 Hz, respectively. The gain, phase lag and visual suppression in VOR of the pendular rotation test were measured, and the age-dependent changes in these scores were evaluated. The following results were obtained: 1. The gain in VOR with eyes open in a dark booth was significantly decreased in the older than 65 years group. 2. The phase lag was significantly increased in the older than 65 years group. 3. There were no significant differences of VOR-visual suppression between any of the age groups. The gain in normal subjects was significantly larger than that of the affected side in patients with unilateral peripheral vestibular disorders. The phase lag in patients with unilateral peripheral vestibular disorders was significantly larger than in normal subjects. Similar to normal subjects, this stimulation caused no significant differences in the VOR-VS between the affected side and the normal side in patients with unilateral peripheral vestibular disorders.