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To investigate how changing the injection duration at cardiac computed tomography angiography (CCTA) affects contrast enhancement in newborns and infants.Included were 142 newborns and infants with confirmed congenital heart disease who underwent CCTA between January 2015 and December 2018. In group 1 (n = 71 patients), the injection duration was 8 s; in group 2 (n = 71) it was 16 s. Our findings were assessed by one-to-one matching analysis to estimate the propensity score of each patient. We compare the CT number for the pulmonary artery (PA), ascending aorta (AAO), left superior vena cava (SVC), AAO and PA enhancement ratio, and the scores for visualization between the two groups.In group 1, median CT number and ranges was 345 (211-591) HU in the AAO, 324 (213-567) HU in the PA, and 62 (1-70) HU in the SVC. These values were 465 (308-669) HU, 467 (295-638) HU, and 234 (67-443) HU, respectively, in group 2 (p 0.05). The median score for volume-rendering visualization on 3D images of the CCTA was 2 in group 1 and 3 in group 2; the score for visualization of the left SVC of the maximum intensity projection images was 2 in group 1 and 3 in group 2 (p 0.05). The CT number for the AAO and PA enhancement ratio was 15.2 in group 1 and 9.2 in group 2 (p 0.05).The 16-sec injection protocol yielded significantly higher CT numbers for the AAO, PA, and the SVC than the 8-sec injection protocol; the visualization scores were also significantly higher in group 2.In newborns and infants, the longer injection time for CCTA yields stable and higher contrast enhancement at identical CM concentrations.

To compare the computed tomography (CT) number for paediatric cardiac computed tomography angiography (CCTA) and visualisation score of the three-dimensional (3D) images using the conventional T-shaped extended tube (T-tube) and spiral flow-generating extended tube (spiral-tube) connected between the contrast injector and cannula.In total, 108 patients suspected to have congenital heart disease (CHD) were considered for inclusion. We utilised the T-tube for intravenous contrast and spiral-tube in 54 patients each. Observers individually inspected randomized volume rendering images of the internal thoracic artery, each acquired from the with or without spiral-tube groups, using a four-point scale. We compared the mean CT number of the ascending aorta (AAO) and pulmonary artery (PA), contrast noise ratio (CNR), CT number for the AAO and PA enhancement ratio, and the visualisation scores between the groups.There were no significant differences in patient characteristics between the with or without spiral-tube groups (p 0.05). The mean CT number ±standard deviation for the AAO and PA, and the CNR without or with spiral-tube groups were 441.2 ± 89.2 and 489.8 ± 86.1 HU for the AAO, 436.3 ± 100.6 and 475.3 ± 85.2 HU for the PA, and 9.5 ± 2.2 and 10.8 ± 2.4 for the CNR, respectively (p 0.05). In the spiral-tube group, the CT number, CNR, and visualisations score of the 3D images were significantly higher for the AAO and PA than those in the T-tube group (p 0.05).The spiral-tube proved to be beneficial in improving the CT number for the AAO and PA, CNR, and visualisation score compared with the conventional T-tube during paediatric CCTA.The spiral-tube may allow the visualisation of smaller blood vessels than those visualised by the conventional T-tube for paediatric patients in CCTA.

This study aims to predict endoleak after endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) using machine learning (ML) integration of patient characteristics, stent-graft configuration, and a selection of vessel lengths, diameters and angles measured using pre-operative computed tomography angiography (CTA).We evaluated 1-year follow-up CT scans (arterial and delayed phases) in patients who underwent EVAR for the presence or absence of an endoleak. We also obtained data on the patient characteristics, stent-graft selection, and preoperative CT vessel morphology (diameter, length, and angle). The extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) for the ML system was trained on 30 patients with endoleaks and 81 patients without. We evaluated 5217 items in 111 patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms, including the patient characteristics, stent-graft configuration and vascular morphology acquired using pre-EVAR abdominal CTA. We calculated the area under the curve (AUC) of our receiver operating characteristic analysis using the ML method.The AUC, accuracy, 95% confidence interval (CI), sensitivity, and specificity were 0.88, 0.88, 0.79-0.97, 0.85, and 0.91 for ML applying XGBoost, respectively.The diagnostic performance of the ML method was useful when factors such as the patient characteristics, stent-graft configuration and vessel length, diameter and angle of the vessels were considered from pre-EVAR CTA.Based on our findings, we suggest that this is a potential application of ML for the interpretation of abdominal CTA scans in patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms scheduled for EVAR.

The purpose of this study was to demonstrate that dose reduction does not compromise image quality when combining high helical pitch (HP) and the ECG-Edit function during low HP retrospectively gated computed tomography angiography (CTA).This study made use of a pulsating cardiac phantom (ALPHA 1 VTPC). The heart rate (HR) of the cardiac phantom was changed in five intervals, every 5 beats per minute (bpm), from 40 to 60 bpm. Evaluation of a range of HR was important because data loss might occur when combining a low HR and high HP. We performed retrospectively gated CTA scans five times using a low HP (0.16) and high HP (0.24), for each of the five HR intervals, using a 64-detector row CT scanner. The CT volume dose index (CTDIData loss occurred with a HR of 40 bpm and 45 bpm when using HP 0.24. The CTDIThe ECG-Edit function is potential useful for repairing the lost data in patients with a low HR, and when combined with a high HP, it is possible to reduce the radiation dose by approximately 33%.The ECG-Edit function and high HP may be a viable option in pediatric CTA studies.

This study aimed to compare the correlation between the computed tomography (CT) enhancement rate of the venous to portal venous phase (VP-ER) and the extracellular volume (ECV) fraction with shear-wave ultrasound elastography (USE) findings in patients with liver fibrosis.We included 450 patients with clinically suspected liver cirrhosis who underwent triphasic dynamic CT studies and USE. We compared the USE results with the unenhanced CT phase, with enhancement in the hepatic artery phase (HAP), portal venous phase (PVP), and venous phase (VP), and with the ECV fraction and the VP-ER. We also compared the area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of the ECV fraction and VP-ER with that of the values obtained with USE.The VP-ER was the most highly correlated with the liver stiffness value determined with USE (Pearson's correlation coefficient: r = 0.37), followed by enhancement in the PVP (r = -0.25), CT number on unenhanced CT scans (r = -0.22), the ECV fraction (r = 0.19), enhancement in the VP (r = 0.059), and enhancement in the HAP (r = -0.023) (all p 0.01). The VP-ER showed a significantly higher AUC than the ECV fraction (0.75 vs 0.62) when the liver stiffness was15 kPa in USE studies (p = 0.04).Compared to the ECV fraction, the VP-ER is more useful for predicting all degrees of liver fibrosis on routine triphasic dynamic CT images.Although improvement is needed, the VP-ER has a higher diagnostic ability for liver fibrosis than the ECV fraction in clinical practice.

Objetivou-se avaliar dois intervalos de pastejo de pastos de capim-elefante (Pennisetum purpureum Schum.): um intervalo variável, quando o dossel atingisse 95% de interceptação da radiação fotossinteticamente ativa, e um intervalo de pastejo fixo, de 26 dias. O delineamento experimental foi o inteiramente casualizado com medidas repetidas no tempo. O intervalo de pastejo, a altura do dossel no pré e pós-pastejo, a interceptação da radiação fotossinteticamente ativa e o índice de área foliar foram maiores quando aplicado o intervalo de pastejo fixo. Não houve efeito dos intervalos de pastejo sobre as massas de forragem, de folhas e de colmos no pré e pós-pastejo nem sobre a densidade volumétrica do dossel no pré-pastejo. A massa de material morto foi menor no intervalo de pastejo variável em comparação ao intervalo fixo, tanto no pré quanto no pós-pastejo. Os teores de fibra em detergente neutro e fibra em detergente ácido nos pastos manejados em intervalo variável foram menores que naquela com intervalo fixo. A aplicação de intervalo de pastejo variável, por permitir redução do tempo de descanso do pasto, tem efeitos positivos na qualidade da forragem.

We report on measurements of a mode-locking resonance in amorphous Mo x Ge 1− x films at different temperatures T down to 0.8 K, which is well below the superconducting transition (6 K). We observe dynamic ordering of driven vortex matter for all the temperatures studied. As the field exceeds a certain critical field B c , dyn at fixed T , moving vortices do not exhibit dynamic ordering. At high T , this field B c , dyn ( T ), so-called dynamic melting, nearly coincides with a characteristic field B c ( T ) where the linear resistivity vanishes. At low T , however, B c , dyn ( T ) is significantly suppressed compared to B c ( T ), suggesting intrinsic quantum melting in the absence of pinning.

The role of microsomal placental leucine aminopeptidase (microsomal P-LAP) in the decreased pressor responsiveness to angiotensin II (A-II) in pregnancy was studied. Appreciable amounts of microsomal P-LAP activity were found in rat placenta. The similar dose to the endogenous activity, of human microsomal P-LAP exogenously administered to rats, resulted in significant decrease in the response to A-II. Bestatin, an inhibitor of the microsomal leucine aminopeptidase administered to pregnant rats, enhanced the A-II response. Therefore our present study suggests such refractoriness in response to A-II in pregnancy is due to increased inactivation by the microsomal P-LAP. It was also suggested that prostaglandins were not involved in such refractoriness by the experiments with indomethacin.

This paper presents a digital rights management (DRM) scheme for mobile broadcasting that integrates management via broadcasting and communications. The scheme provides access control and rights protection for subscription Mobile IPTV (Internet Protocol TV), enabling transmission of contract information to control broadcasting reception via both broadcasting wave and communications. It has transmission functions that reduce the amount of contract information that has to be transmitted through broadcasting as well as a function for transmitting contract information via communications. A PC simulation indicates that the DRM scheme is effective in terms of the transmission rate required to send contract information via broadcasting wave. We also demonstrated the feasibility of the DRM scheme by using a prototype system implemented on an SIM card. The DRM scheme enables advanced mobile receiver functions such as pay-per-view with an interactivity channel using communications and a subscription TV such as pay-per-month on mobile receivers without an interactivity channel by transmitting contract information via broadcasting wave.

This paper presents an advanced conditional access system (CAS) for digital broadcasting receivers using program-related information called metadata. Digital broadcasting receivers using metadata (DBRM) provide services enhanced by using metadata and content stored in receivers, but it is so easy to edit stored content by using metadata that broadcasters require a content usage control mechanism for DBRM. The advanced CAS provides a secure environment for content and metadata in digital broadcasting receivers by preventing tampering and ensuring that only metadata certified by the broadcaster can be used. To evaluate the advanced CAS, we also developed a smart card and a prototype receiver on a PC. We have demonstrated in an implementation experiment that the advanced CAS can be implemented securely and utilized in broadcasting services using DBRM.

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the partial replacement of soybean meal (SBM) for wet brewer's grains (WBG) or urea on the performance of lactating dairy cows. The second investigated whether WBG ensiled with corn kept animal performance in low- and high-producing dairy cows compared with WBG. In experiment I, 40 Holstein cows were used in 4 × 4 Latin square design. The treatments comprised WBG or urea as partial replacement for SBM, as follows: control (diet based on SBM and 1 % of urea), 10 % of WBG, 20 % of WBG, and 2 % of urea. Dry matter intake (DMI) was not affected by treatments. WBG increased milk yield linearly, but it decreased with urea. Milk fat content responded quadratically to WBG levels. Milk protein content decreased, while plasma urea nitrogen increased with high urea addition. In experiment II, 42 Holstein cows were divided into two groups according to production levels. Eighteen cows composed the group of low producing, while the high-producing group comprised 24 cows. The experimental design was a crossover with two periods of 14 days. The experimental treatments consisted of feeding WBG or WBG ensiled with ground corn. Regardless of the production level, no difference in milk yield and milk composition between treatments was observed.

An open gradient magnetic separator using solenoid magnet was proposed. Simulation study was performed to investigate the basic separation characteristics of our separation method by analyzing the dynamic motion of magnetic particles. The simulation results show that the separation of ferromagnetic particles of several tens micrometer diameter is enough feasible. Separation experiment using a high-temperature superconducting magnet was performed to verify the validity of our method.

A Fuel cleanup system (FCU) that recovers fusion fuel (tritium and deuterium) from plasma exhaust mixture gas has been developed and demonstrated at the Tritium Process Laboratory (TPL) of Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI). We have proposed a new closed loop FCU system built up by connecting the tubular reservoir tank, the electrolytic reactor and a palladium diffuser. In the electrolytic reactor, methane and water are converted at the same time by electrochemical reaction in gas phase oxidation and reduction to liberate hydrogen isotope as a form of elemental hydrogen. The long tubular reservoir tank that is designed to store and transfer the products gas in plug flow prevents from mixing with reactants for the successive repeat processing. With this tank, high overall decontamination factor of system can be obtained by small number of circulation. As the demonstration test, mixture gas consist of hydrogen isotopes, methane and He were processed in the closed loop FCU. The electrolytic reactor and the tubular reservoir tank worked as designed successfully, and the entire loop exhibited efficient impurity processing performance. The concentration of methane was observed to decrease sharply in every processing by the electrolytic reactor from 2.3% to less than 12ppm finally.

Velocity statistics along the stagnation line of an axi-symmetric wall stagnating turbulent flow are studied experimentally. A low turbulence, uniform air flow from a nozzle type air supply with an exit diameter of 50 mm stagnates at a wall located 50 mm downstream. A flow velocity is set to 3 m/s, 10 mm downstream from the exit of the air supply. Instantaneous values of streamwise and radial velocities are measured by laser-Doppler velocimetry. The turbulence level in the air flow is changed by use of turbulence generator. When the turbulence generator is not installed in the air supply, the mean velocity profile in the streamwise direction fits well with that of a laminar viscous flow with the rms value of velocity fluctuations low near the wall. With the turbulence generator installed, a significant turbulence structure appears near the wall. When the wall is approached, the rms value of velocity fluctuations in the streamwise direction decreases monotonically while the profile of the rms value in the radial direction reaches a maximum near the wall. The increase in the rms value of velocity fluctuations in the radial direction near the wall is attributed to the bi-modal histogram of the fluctuating velocity in the radial direction. Near the wall, the instantaneous stagnation streamline fluctuates and the probability of the mean location of the stagnation point reaches a maximum not at the stagnation line but on a circle around the stagnation line, resulting in the bi-modal histogram. Turbulence statistics, the rms value of velocity fluctuation and the turbulent kinetic energy, can be normalized successfully by similarity parameters based on the strain rate and the reference turbulent kinetic energy introduced by Champion and Libby.

In this paper, two methods are presented to measure 3D shape of red-hot ingot by visions. In the first method, contour analysis is used and a rather simple measuring system is configured. In the second method, the slit-ray projection is employed and the problem of fluctuation caused by gravity of target ingot is strongly considered. A technique of curve fitting is developed for reconstruction of cross-sections. Experiments show that both of contour analysis and slit-ray projection are applicable.

(1994). Development of high‐speed TIG pipe welding. Welding International: Vol. 8, No. 2, pp. 149-156.

We investigate the lattice orientation of driven vortex matter prior to dynamic melting at the field ${B}_{c,\mathrm{dyn}}$ (i.e., melting for driven vortex lattices) in an amorphous Mo${}_{x}$Ge${}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}$ film using a mode-locking technique. Under increasing field $B$ at fixed temperatures $T$, we observe a switching of the lattice orientation from a perpendicular to parallel orientation at a $T$-dependent characteristic field ${B}_{\mathrm{ori}}(T)$. The shape of the ${B}_{\mathrm{ori}}(T)$ line in the $B$-$T$ plane resembles that of the dynamic melting line ${B}_{c,\mathrm{dyn}}(T)$, ${B}_{\mathrm{ori}}(T)\ensuremath{\approx}0.8{B}_{c,\mathrm{dyn}}(T)$, while ${B}_{c,\mathrm{dyn}}(T)$ at low $T$ is significantly suppressed compared to a static melting line due to quantum effects. The results reveal that the lattice rotation occurs as a precursor of dynamic melting instead of static melting and it possibly arises from reduced effective pinning prior to dynamic melting.

Calcite and silica gel composites prepared by sol gel technique were hydrothermally solidified under a saturated steam pressure. The composites were fabricated by calcite and tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) without or with AlCl3⋅6H2O. The silica gel particles with several hundreds nm in diameter were observed around the surface of the calcite particles before the hydrothermal processing. The bending strengths of the hydrothermally solidified materials without Al element were relatively low even after the hydrothermal processing. In contrast, the bending strengths of the hydrothermally solidified materials with Al element increased up to 6.0 MPa after 10 h of hydrothermal processing at 200° C. The SEM photographs of the hydrothermally solidified samples with Al element showed that silica gel particles are converted to platy‐like deposit during the hydrothermal processing. The platy‐like deposit formed around the calcite particles are estimated to act as a binder between the calcite particles, resulting in the dev...

Summary A new process of friction—assisted extrusion for Deducing thin strips was developed. An aluminium toll of about 50 μ in thickness could be formed at an extrusion ratio R=20C with a considerably Tow punch, pressure ratio p/2k=1 (p: punch pressure, k: yield snear stress; at room temperature. Tie extrusion process Is applied to powder forming for producing thin straps of aluminium composite materials. Composite aluminium powder mixed with SiC ceramics powder ay 0~20 vol% is successfully extruded into thin strips at room temperature.

Measurements of the ultrasonic attenuation under dynamic plastic deformation are made for polycrystalline aluminium at strain rates up to about 12000 /s. The results are analysed regarding the superposition of the ultrasonic wave upon the dynamic deformation as a differential test by a very small amplitude and very high frequency perturbation. From the results of the measurements, the dependency of the flow stress upon the instantaneous strain rate is evaluated and compared with the strain rate dependency of the flow stress obtained from the direct measurements of the flow stress. The roles of the instantaneous strain rate and the strain rate history played in the steep rise in the strain rate sensitivity of the flow stress observed at strain rates above about 5000 /s are discussed.

This paper presents an advanced CAS which provides access control and rights protection for mobile TV content. This advanced CAS can reduce the amount of contract information transmitted through broadcasting. We also demonstrated the feasibility of the proposed CAS by using a prototype system implemented on a SIM card.

The third generation of single-chip LSIs has been developed to achieve higher picture and sound quality for a multifunctional television receiver. The following were the design objectives: (1) an optimized system offering higher picture/sound quality and multiple device functions; (2) improved performance of different functional characteristics; (3) fewer peripheral components; and (4) stabilized synchronization for various signal sources. >

The hydrogen-isotope exchange reaction (T-for-H exchange reaction) between tritiated water vapor (HTO vapor) and 3-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzoic acid (and it's analog; 4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzoic acid) were observed at 50 and 70 °C in a gas–solid system to reveal the reactivity of a functional group in an aromatic compound having two substituents in the aromatic ring. Further, it was shown that (a) the reactivity of the compounds used in this work follows the Hammett's rule, and (b) the reactivity of trisubstituted aromatic compound could be analyzed by applying the additive property of the Hammett's rule even if the compound contains a substituent at the ortho-position.

Legumes have a unique characteristic in that they fix atmospheric nitrogen by symbiosis with Rhizobium, vital in maintaining sustainable world agriculture. Legumes are also important crops in their own right, with a high content of seed proteins with a good balance of amino acids among them (Sarwar et al. 1978). Lotus japonicus as a model legume is attracting the attention of researchers because of its high transformation susceptibility (Thykajaer et al. 1995), and a relatively small genome size (475 MB, Kawasaki and Murakami 2000; Murakami and Kawasaki, submitted). From the standard accession Gifu (G129) several mutant libraries have been constructed for use in functional genomics (Szczyglowski et al. 1998; Kawaguchi et al. 2002). The most interesting topic in its regard is no doubt the genetic dissection of the nodulation process, including that of the related mycorrhizal development. If essential components of the process can be clarified, transferring the ability of the nitrogen fixation to other important crops, including the graminaceous family, would be a great blessing for world agriculture and for environment protection. However, the current status of infrastructures for genomics in Lotus japonicus is still far behind those of Arabidopsis and rice, whose genomes have been sequenced completely (The Arabidopsis Genome Initiative 2000; Goff et al. 2002; Yu et al. 2002).

Single crystals of Bi/sub 2/Te/sub 3/ and its solid solutions with Bi/sub 2/Se/sub 3/ for n type material show anisotropy of thermoelectric property. Hot-pressed materials also show the anisotropy, but it is weaker than the single crystals and the one directional polycrystals. In a hot pressed material, crystal grains orient with an orientational distribution. In this work, we compared the orientational distributions of hot-pressed materials which were made by different process conditions and attempted to lead the best procedure parameters of a hot-pressed material that give a high Z-value.

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) patients are at risk of significant weight change relating to several factors. However, the relationship between body weight and calorie requirement during each stage of the disease is not known. The purpose of this study was to explore the appropriate nutritional management of DMD patients. Retrospective data from 28 DMD patients (mean age 20.6 ± 3.5 years) was assessed withrespect to body weight (BW), resting energy expenditure (REE), and assessment of respiratory and circulatory functions, which were conducted during annual examinations for at least 3 years. Based on the annual change in BW, 76 events were obtained from 28 patients and classified into 3 groups: (1) gain in BW of >10% (n = 5); (2) loss in BW of >10% (n = 10); and (3) no change (n = 61). REE was measured by indirect calorimetry, and the change in REE was evaluated for each group. Clinical features, including respiratory and circulatory functions, were also evaluated. Prior to this study, REE in groups 1 (BW gain), 2 (BW loss), and 3 (no change) were not significantly different (1 115,7, 1 077,5, and 1 144,2 kcal/d, respectively). Analyses of annual change in REE among each group also failed to show significant differences. The study revealed that calorie requirements did not change in group 2 (BW loss). This group also developed severe clinical complications, reduced dietary intake due to infection (4/10), cerebral infarction (2/10), and heart failure (2/10); however, no such complications developed in the other groups. The loss of BW led to a further BW decrease in the absence of appropriate nutritional intervention, due to higher calorie requirements than predicted from BW (3/10). To conclude, the daily calorie requirement did not change with a gain or loss of BW. It is possible that loss of BW lead to severe complication in DMD patients. It may be required for comprehensive care to apply nutritional support as nutritional supplements and respiratory support.

We describe a case of persistent left-sided superior vena cava discovered after insertion of a pulmonary artery (PA) catheter. The diagnosis was suggested by chest X-ray after PA catheter placement and was subsequently confirmed by an echocardiograph. A 68-year-old man was admitted to our ICU because of septic shock induced by MRSA enterocolitis. In order to monitor the hemodynamic state of the patient, a PA catheter was inserted through the left subclavian vein after placement of a central venous and flexible double lumen catheters through the right internal jugular and subclavian veins, respectively. A chest X-ray showed the PA catheter passing along the left border of the heart. An echocardiograph showed the PA catheter passing through the coronary sinus into the pulmonary artery. Anesthesiologists and intensivists should be aware of the occurrence of left-sided superior vena cava in order not to mistake catheters placed in it as being in the arterial circulation or malpositioned outside of the venous circulation.

A 51-year-old man presented with massive hematemesis. Perforation of upper esophageal cancer, which had already occurred at least six days earlier, progressed to upper mediastinitis. The mediastinitis contiguous to the right subclavian artery was considered to have caused a pseudoaneurysm. Rupture of the pseudoaneurysm into the esophagus resulted in massive hematemesis. Both enhanced computed tomography and angiography were diagnostic for the pseudoaneurysm. Transluminal endovascular stent-grafts placement was successful in preventing subsequent hemorrhage.

Intra-thoracic aortic clamping using an intra-aortic balloon occlusion catheter (IABOC) is employed for patients with life-threatening intra-abdominal and/or extra-abdominal bleeding in spite of massive transfusion. For perioperative management, we inserted an IABOC preoperatively into a 59-year-old man with life-threatening intra-abdominal bleeding from an abscess formed around his traumatically injured pancreas. We could perform a safe operation in which bleeding was controlled by intermittently occluding the IABOC and the patient was thus prevented from developing into severe hemorrhagic shock. We experienced a usefulness of IABOC for a patient with life-threatening intra-abdominal bleeding uncontrolled due to intra-abdominal adhesion during the perioperative period. However, organ dysfunctions caused by ischemia and reperfusion following intra-aortic balloon occlusion must be prevented by shortening the occlusion time through use of an intermittent method such as described above.

A 15 year old female with uterus bicornis bicollis was admitted for operation. She had a history of atopic dermatitis and allergy to buckwheat, raw egg and latex. Two months previously she had developed whole body flushing during dental treatment, and latex glove used by the dentist had been suspected as the cause. Prior to the operation she underwent internal examination and intrauterine echogram in which a latex glove was carelessly used by another gynecologist who had not confirmed her past history. After 30 minutes, dyspnea and urticaria without itching, appeared suddenly. Blood pressure decreased to 80/50 mmHg and heart rate increased to 120 beats.min-1. She was then transferred to our ICU. Methylprednisolone was administered intravenously for dyspnea and circulatory collapse. After 3 hours, the patient made an uneventful recovery. The increased plasma latex protein-specific IgE levels confirmed anaphylaxis to latex. The increasing incidence of potentially life-threatening allergic reactions to latex has caused mounting concern over recent years. We may suspect latex allergy when an anaphylaxic reaction or shock of unknown origin occurs. In hospitals, latex free products must be prepared for use with latex allergic patients and for protection of medical staff with this allergy.

A 31-year-old pregnant woman with a history of several episodes of deep vein thrombosis was scheduled for Caesarian section. The patient had an increased risk of intraoperative pulmonary thromboembolism due to thrombi isolated from deep veins. This is because a thrombus can be formed easily in deep veins by the influence of hypercoagulability in the third trimester and by the disturbance of venous return due to the pressure of the enlarged pregnant uterus. A temporary IVC filter (Filtre Thery, France) was inserted preoperatively. The filter basket was set in the IVC cephalad from the left renal vein and caudad from the hepatic vein. The operation was completed without any trouble. Rehabilitation was safely initiated just after the surgery by insertion of the filter and then the filter was removed on the third postoperative day. We conclude that the preoperative insertion of a temporary IVC filter is a useful technique to prevent intraoperative pulmonary thromboembolism in a patient with a history of deep vein thrombosis.

The advent of H2-receptor antagonists (H2RA) and proton pump inhibitors (PPI) has particularly revolutionized the treatment of peptic ulcer disease. Most cases can now be successfully controlled by medical treatment with H2RA and PPI, but a high rate of ulcer recurrence remains an important problem. The quality of ulcer healing (QOUH) has therefore received increasing attention, and various investigators have attempted to define the conditions required for nonrecurrence. Ulcer scars with a good QOUH are considered to have a very low risk of recurrence. Recent studies have confirmed that recurrence of peptic ulcer can be suppressed markedly by eradication of Helicobacter pylori (H. p). Moreover, various types of endoscopic examinations (conventional observation, dye-contrast endoscopy, magnifying endoscopy, endoscopic ultrasonography, pharmacoendoscopy) have confirmed that the QOUH after eradication of H. p is better than that after conventional anti-ulcer therapy. H. p eradication therapy may become treatment of first choice for peptic ulcers.

We studied the correlation between choroidal venous dilatation, intrachoroidal leakage of dye, and subretinal leakage from the choroid in patients with serous retinal detachment unaccompanied by choroidal neovascularization. We reviewed 13 eyes with anamnesis of serous retinal detachment, 23 eyes without anamnesis, and one eye of unknown status of a total of 37 eyes. Regarding the relationship between subretinal dye leakage from the choroid in fluorescein angiography (FAG) and choroidal venous dilatation in indocyanine green angiography (ICG), the point of subretinal leakage (31 points) was on and/or in the neighborhood of the site of choroidal venous dilatation in 87.1% of the 27 eyes, except for eyes of unknown site of leakage in FAG. The point of subretinal leakage was within and/or in the neighborhood of the intrachoroidal leakage of dye in ICG in 92% of the eyes. In serous retinal detachment without choroidal neovascular membranes, serous retinal detachment may be caused by breakdown of the outer retinal barrier due to choroidal venous congestion and intrachoroidal diffusion.

T-8581 is a new water-soluble triazole antifungal agent. The geometric mean IC80s (GM-IC80S; where the IC80 is the lowest drug concentration which reduced the optical density at 630 nm by 80% compared with the optical density at 630 nm of the drug-free control) for Candida albicans were as follows: T-8581, 0.218 microgram/ml; fluconazole; 0.148 microgram/ml; and itraconazole, 0.0170 microgram/ml. For Cryptococcus neoformans the GM-IC80s were as follows: T-8581, 9.28 micrograms/ml; fluconazole, 4.00 micrograms/ml; and itraconazole, 0.119 microgram/ml. For Aspergillus fumigatus the GM-IC80s were as follows: T-8581, 71.0 micrograms/ml; fluconazole, 239 micrograms/ml; and itraconazole, 0.379 microgram/ml. Against systemic candidiasis in mice, the 50% effective doses (ED50s) of T-8581, fluconazole, and itraconazole (given orally) were 0.412, 0.392, and > 320 mg/kg of body weight, respectively. Against systemic aspergillosis in mice, the ED50s of T-8581, fluconazole, and itraconazole (given orally) were 50.5, 138, > 320 mg/kg, respectively. T-8581 was also efficacious when it was given parenterally (ED50, 59.2 mg/kg), while the ED50 of fluconazole given parenterally was > 20 mg/kg. Against systemic aspergillosis in rabbits, T-8581 was more effective than fluconazole and itraconazole in prolonging the life span. The high concentrations of T-8581 were observed in the sera of mice, rats, rabbits and dogs. Species differences in half-lives and areas under the concentration-time curves were observed, with the values for mice, rats, rabbits, and dogs increasing in that order. These results suggest that T-8581 would be a potentially effective antifungal drug for oral and parenteral use.

The arrangement of cortical microtubules (MTs) in differentiating tracheids of Abies sachalinensis Masters was examined by confocal laser scanning microscopy after immunofluorescent staining. The arrays of MTs in the tracheids during formation of the primary wall were not well ordered and the predominant orientation changed from longitudinal to transverse. During formation of the secondary wall, the arrays of MTs were well ordered and their orientation changed progressively from a flat S-helix to a steep Z-helix and then to a flat S-helix as the differentiation of tracheids proceeded. The orientation of cellulose microfibrils (MFs) on the innermost surface of cell walls changed in a similar manner to that of the MTs. These results provide strong evidence for the co-alignment of MTs and MFs during the formation of the semi-helicoidal texture of the cell wall in conifer tracheids.