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Pulmonary sclerosing pneumocytoma (PSP) is a rare, benign tumor. Given the challenges of a bronchoscopic diagnosis, surgery is performed during the early stages of the disease. Therefore, little is known about the growth pattern of PSP. This case of PSP was not diagnosed despite bronchoscopy, resulting in lung resection eight years after the anomaly was first identified on computed tomography (CT). This report compares the long-term follow-up of CT and pathological findings and discusses the difficulty in making a diagnosis using a bronchoscopic forceps biopsy to aid in future PSP diagnoses and treatment planning.

Background: No comprehensive analysis of the pulmonary sequelae of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Japan based on respiratory function tests and chest computed tomography (CT) has been reported. We evaluated post-COVID-19 conditions, especially focusing on pulmonary sequelae assessed by pulmonary function tests and chest CT., Methods: For this prospective cohort study, we enrolled 1069 patients who presented pneumonia at the time of admission in 55 hospitals from February 2020 to September 2021. Disease severity was classified as moderateⅠ, moderate II, and severe, defined primarily according to the degree of respiratory failure. The data on post-COVID-19 conditions over 12 months, pulmonary function, and chest CT findings at 3 months were evaluated in this study. Additionally, the impact of COVID-19 severity on pulmonary sequelae, such as impaired diffusion capacity, restrictive pattern, and CT abnormalities, was also evaluated., Results: The most frequently reported post-COVID-19 conditions at 3 months after COVID-19 were muscle weakness, dyspnea, and fatigue (48.4%, 29.0%, and 24.7%, respectively). The frequency of symptoms gradually decreased over subsequent months. In pulmonary function tests at 3 months, the incidence of impaired diffusion capacity and restrictive pattern increased depending on disease severity. There also were differences in the presence of chest CT abnormalities at the 3 months, which was markedly correlated with the severity., Conclusion: We reported a comprehensive analysis of post-COVID-19 condition, pulmonary function, and chest CT abnormalities in Japanese patients with COVID-19. The findings of this study will serve as valuable reference data for future post-COVID-19 condition research in Japan., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing interest The authors have no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Background: Empyema necessitans (EN) is a rare condition characterized by pleural infection with pus spreading into adjacent soft tissues. Although Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Actinomyces israelii are common causative agents, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is relatively rare, but it is associated with high mortality in empyema cases. We aimed to report a unique case of EN caused by MRSA and present a literature review to better understand this rare condition., Case Presentation: A 69-year-old man with a history of right ureteral stone presented with fever and left anterior thoracic pain. A physical examination revealed redness and swelling in the left thoracic region. Imaging studies confirmed EN with fluid accumulation around the sternocostal joint of the left first rib. MRSA was identified from blood and pleural fluid cultures. The patient received antimicrobial therapy, and a chest tube was inserted for drainage. Despite initial improvement, vertebral osteomyelitis was diagnosed on day 17. The antimicrobials were subsequently terminated after 6 weeks, but vertebral osteomyelitis recurred, and treatment was resumed and completed on day 215., Conclusion: EN caused by MRSA is rare, and the literature review revealed 14 cases from human sources. Positive blood cultures were observed in 40% of cases, and metastatic infections were present in 30% of cases. Osteomyelitis was the most common type of metastatic lesion. All the patients underwent drainage. Patients with MRSA-associated EN frequently develop disseminated lesions and should therefore be carefully examined. Moreover, appropriate treatment with antibiotics and drainage is necessary for a good prognosis. Although the prognosis appeared to be favorable in our review, publication bias and treatment challenges for metastatic infections should be considered., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Introduction: Since the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant became dominant, assessing COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness (VE) against severe disease using hospitalization as an outcome became more challenging due to incidental infections via admission screening and variable admission criteria, resulting in a wide range of estimates. To address this, the World Health Organization (WHO) guidance recommends the use of outcomes that are more specific to severe pneumonia such as oxygen use and mechanical ventilation., Methods: A case-control study was conducted in 24 hospitals in Japan for the Delta-dominant period (August-November 2021; "Delta") and early Omicron (BA.1/BA.2)-dominant period (January-June 2022; "Omicron"). Detailed chart review/interviews were conducted in January-May 2023. VE was measured using various outcomes including disease requiring oxygen therapy, disease requiring invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV), death, outcome restricting to "true" severe COVID-19 (where oxygen requirement is due to COVID-19 rather than another condition(s)), and progression from oxygen use to IMV or death among COVID-19 patients., Results: The analysis included 2125 individuals with respiratory failure (1608 cases [75.7%]; 99.2% of vaccinees received mRNA vaccines). During Delta, 2 doses provided high protection for up to 6 months (oxygen requirement: 95.2% [95% CI:88.7-98.0%] [restricted to "true" severe COVID-19: 95.5% {89.3-98.1%}]; IMV: 99.6% [97.3-99.9%]; fatal: 98.6% [92.3-99.7%]). During Omicron, 3 doses provided high protection for up to 6 months (oxygen requirement: 85.5% [68.8-93.3%] ["true" severe COVID-19: 88.1% {73.6-94.7%}]; IMV: 97.9% [85.9-99.7%]; fatal: 99.6% [95.2-99.97]). There was a trend towards higher VE for more severe and specific outcomes., Conclusion: Multiple outcomes pointed towards high protection of 2 doses during Delta and 3 doses during Omicron. These results demonstrate the importance of using severe and specific outcomes to accurately measure VE against severe COVID-19, as recommended in WHO guidance in settings of intense transmission as seen during Omicron., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Takeshi Arashiro is an unpaid consultant for the World Health Organization. The other authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Background: Repeated emergence of variants with immune escape capacity and waning immunity from vaccination are major concerns for COVID-19. We examined whether the surge in Omicron subvariant BA.5 cases was due to immune escape or waning immunity through vaccine effectiveness (VE) evaluation., Methods: A test-negative case-control study was conducted in 16 clinics/hospitals during the BA.1/BA.2-dominant and BA.5-dominant periods. VE against symptomatic infection was estimated after adjusting for age, sex, comorbidity, occupation, testing frequency, prior infection, close contact history, clinic/hospital, week, and preventive measures. Absolute VE (aVE) was calculated for 2/3/4 doses, compared to the unvaccinated. Relative VE (rVE) was calculated, comparing 3 vs 2 and 4 vs 3 doses., Results: 13,025 individuals were tested during the BA.1/BA.2-dominant and BA.5-dominant periods with similar baseline characteristics. For BA.1/BA.2, aVE was 52 % (95 %CI:34-66) 14 days-3 months post-dose 2, 42 % (29-52) > 6 months post-dose 2, 71 % (64-77) 14 days-3 months post-dose 3, and 68 % (52-79) 3-6 months post-dose 3. rVE was 49 % (38-57) 14 days-3 months post-dose 3 and 45 % (18-63) 3-6 months post-dose 3. For BA.5, aVE was 56 % (27-73) 3-6 months post-dose 2, 32 % (12-47) > 6 months post-dose 2, 70 % (61-78) 14 days-3 months post-dose 3, 59 % (48-68) 3-6 months post-dose 3, 50 % (29-64) > 6 months post-dose 3, and 74 % (61-83) ≥ 14 days post-dose 4. rVE was 56 % (45-65) 14 days-3 months post-dose 3, 39 % (27-48) 3-6 months post-dose 3, 25 % (-2-45) > 6 months post-dose 3, and 30 % (-6-54) ≥ 14 days post-dose 4., Conclusions: Booster doses initially provided high protection against BA.5 at a level similar to that against BA.1/BA.2. However, the protection seemed shorter-lasting against BA.5, which likely contributed to the surge. Furthermore, rVE post-dose 4 was low even among recent vaccinees. These results support the introduction of variant-containing vaccines and emphasize the need for vaccines with longer duration of protection., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Background: Patients with breast cancer present with lymphadenopathy involving non-caseating epithelioid cell granulomas in the mediastinum or axilla, referred to as sarcoidosis or sarcoid-like reactions (SLRs). However, sarcoidosis/SLRs prevalence and clinical presentation remain unclear. This study aimed to determine the frequency and clinical presentation of sarcoidosis/SLRs among postoperative patients with breast cancer., Methods: Among all patients who underwent surgery for early-stage breast cancer at St. Luke's International Hospital in Japan between 2010 and 2021, those who subsequently developed enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes and underwent bronchoscopy for suspected breast cancer recurrence were included. Patients were classified into sarcoidosis/SLR or metastatic breast cancer groups, and the clinical characteristics were compared., Results: A total of 9,559 patients underwent breast cancer surgery; bronchoscopy was performed to diagnose enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes in 29 cases. Breast cancer recurrence was observed in 20 patients. Eight women with a median age of 49 years (range 38-75) and a median time from surgery to diagnosis of 4.0 years (range 0.2-10.8) were diagnosed with sarcoidosis/SLRs. Four of the eight patients underwent mammoplasty with silicone breast implants (SBIs), and two experienced postoperative recurrences of breast cancer before or after lymphadenopathy, which was considered inciting factors for SLRs. The remaining two cases could have developed sarcoidosis after breast cancer surgery with no underlying causes for SLR., Conclusions: Postoperative sarcoidosis/SLRs rarely occur in patients with breast cancer. An adjuvant action of SBI likely contributed to the progression of SLRs; few cases exhibited a causal relationship with breast cancer recurrence., Competing Interests: Conflict of Interest The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2023 The Japanese Respiratory Society. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Introduction Reports are rare on the usefulness of the FilmArray Respiratory Panel 2.1 (FARP) using lower respiratory tract specimens. This retrospective study assessed its use, as part of a comprehensive infectious disease panel, to detect the viral causes of pneumonia using bronchoalveolar lavage samples from immunosuppressed patients. Methods This study included immunocompromised patients who underwent bronchoalveolar lavage or bronchial washing by bronchoscopy between April 1, 2021, and April 30, 2022. The collected samples were submitted for comprehensive testing, including FARP test; reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for cytomegalovirus, varicella-zoster virus DNA, and herpes simplex virus; PCR for Pneumocystis jirovecii DNA; antigen testing for Aspergillus and Cryptococcus neoformans ; and loop-mediated isothermal amplification method for Legionella . Results Out of 23 patients, 16 (70%) showed bilateral infiltrative shadows on computed tomography and three (13%) were intubated. The most common causes of immunosuppression were anticancer drug use (n=12, 52%) and hematologic tumors (n=11, 48%). Only two (9%) patients tested positive for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 and adenovirus by FARP. Four patients (17%) tested positive for cytomegalovirus by RT-PCR, but no inclusion bodies were identified cytologically. Nine (39%) patients tested positive for Pneumocystis jirovecii by PCR, but cytology confirmed the organism in only one case. Conclusions Comprehensive infectious disease testing, performed using bronchoalveolar lavage samples collected from lung lesions in immunosuppressed patients, showed low positive detection by FARP. The viruses currently detectable by FARP may be less involved in viral pneumonia diagnosed in immunocompromised patients., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright © 2023, Nakamura et al.)

In this multicenter, prospective, test-negative, case-control study in Japan, the effectiveness of both BA.1-containing and BA.4/BA.5-containing bivalent coronavirus disease 2019 mRNA vaccines against symptomatic infection during the BA.5-dominant period was high compared with no vaccination (65% and 76%) and moderate compared with monovalent vaccines administered over half a year earlier (46% combined)., Competing Interests: Potential conflicts of interest. TA is an unpaid consultant for the World Health Organization. Conflicts that the editors consider relevant to the content of the manuscript have been disclosed., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Infectious Diseases Society of America.)

Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared.

Objective The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has changed the inpatient treatment practice for bacterial pneumonia. Upon hospitalization, isolation is required while waiting for the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test result, which may lead to limited access to medical resources and fewer room visits by medical staff. However, little is known about the relationship between isolation and the clinical outcomes of bacterial pneumonia. We hypothesized that isolation of suspected COVID-19 patients who are eventually diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia is associated with a prolonged length of hospitalization as compared with non-isolation. Patients This is a single-center, retrospective observational study of hospitalized adult patients diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia from January 2018 to September 2021. The patients were divided into a non-isolated (patients hospitalized between January 2018 and December 2019, who were not isolated at all) and an isolated group (patients hospitalized between January 2020 and September 2021, who were initially isolated because COVID-19 was suspected). The primary outcome was a prolonged length of hospitalization (≥14 days), and its relationship with isolation was analyzed using logistic regression analysis adjusted for age, sex, CURB-65, and the Charlson Comorbidity Index. Results Among 917 eligible patients, 214 (23%) underwent isolation. In the logistic regression analysis, the isolated group independently had a prolonged length of hospitalization as compared with the non-isolated group (odds ratio 1.49; 95% confidence interval 1.08-2.07, p=0.015). There was no significant difference in antibiotic use duration between the groups. Conclusion The isolation of bacterial pneumonia patients suspected of COVID-19 was associated with prolonged length of hospitalization., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright © 2022, Tamura et al.)

Rationale: The long-term effects of using a high-flow nasal cannula for chronic hypercapnic respiratory failure caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease remain unclear. Objectives: To assess whether long-term high-flow nasal cannula use reduces the number of exacerbations and improves other physiological parameters in patients with chronic hypercapnic respiratory failure caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Methods: We enrolled 104 participants (aged ⩾40 yr) with daytime hypercapnia (Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease stages 2-4) receiving long-term oxygen therapy (⩾16 h/d for ⩾1 mo) and randomly assigned them to high-flow nasal cannula/long-term oxygen therapy and long-term oxygen therapy groups. The primary endpoint was the moderate or severe exacerbation rate. We compared changes from baseline in arterial blood gas values, peripheral oxygen saturation, pulmonary function, health-related quality-of-life scores, and the 6-minute-walk test. Measurements and Main Results: High-flow nasal cannula use significantly reduced the rate of moderate/severe exacerbations (unadjusted mean count 1.0 vs. 2.5, a ratio of the adjusted mean count between groups [95% confidence interval] of 2.85 [1.48-5.47]) and prolonged the duration without moderate or severe exacerbations. The median time to first moderate or severe exacerbation in the long-term oxygen therapy group was 25 (14.1-47.4) weeks; this was not reached in the high-flow nasal cannula/long-term oxygen therapy group. High-flow nasal cannula use significantly improved health-related quality of life scores, peripheral oxygen saturation, and specific pulmonary function parameters. No safety concerns were identified. Conclusions: A high-flow nasal cannula is a reasonable therapeutic option for patients with stable hypercapnic chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and a history of exacerbations. Clinical trial registered with www.umin/ac.jp (UMIN000028581) and www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03282019).

Background: Although diffuse alveolar damage (DAD) is a histopathological hallmark of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), its detection without lung biopsy is challenging. In patients with ARDS, the specificity of the Berlin definition to diagnose DAD as a reference standard is not adequately high, making it difficult to adequately diagnose DAD. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between DAD and clinical findings, including KL-6 and geographic appearance, in ARDS patients and to identify more specific diagnostic criteria for DAD., Methods: Among all adult autopsy cases at a tertiary hospital in Japan between January 2006 and March 2021, patients with ARDS who met the Berlin definition criteria were included. The patients' conditions were classified according to histopathological patterns as DAD or non-DAD, and clinical characteristics, laboratory data, and high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) findings were compared between the two groups., Results: During the study period, 27 met the Berlin definition (median age: 79 years, 19 men), of whom 18 (67%) had DAD and 9 (33%) did not. In the non-DAD group, histopathologic findings revealed organizing pneumonia in seven patients and pulmonary hemorrhage in two patients. On HRCT at onset, patients with DAD had more geographic appearance than those without DAD (89% vs. 44%). In patients with geographic appearance and elevated KL-6 (> 500 U/mL), the sensitivity and specificity for DAD diagnosis were 56% and 100%, respectively. All three patients with no geographic appearance and normal KL-6 did not have DAD., Conclusions: Geographic appearance on HRCT combined with KL-6 levels may predict the presence of DAD in patients with ARDS., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: Despite being minimally invasive, bronchoscopy does not always result in pathological specimens being obtained. Therefore, we investigated whether virtual bronchoscopic navigation (VBN) findings were associated with the rate of diagnosis of primary lung cancer by bronchoscopy in patients with peripheral lung lesions., Methods: This study included patients with suspected malignant peripheral lung lesions who underwent bronchoscopy at St. Luke's International Hospital between October 2013 and March 2020. Patients diagnosed with primary lung cancer were grouped according to whether their pathology could be diagnosed by bronchoscopy, and their clinical factors were compared. In addition, the distance between the edge of the lesion and the nearest branch ("distance by VBN") was calculated. The distance by VBN and various clinical factors were compared with the diagnostic rates of primary lung cancer., Results: The study included 523 patients with 578 lesions. After excluding 55 patients who underwent multiple bronchoscopies, 381 patients were diagnosed with primary lung cancer. The diagnostic rate by bronchoscopy was 71.1% (271/381). Multivariate analysis revealed that the lesion diameter (odds ratio [OR] 1.107), distance by VBN (OR 0.94) and lesion structure (solid lesion or ground-glass nodule; OR 2.988) influenced the risk of a lung cancer diagnosis. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for diagnosis based on lesion diameter and distance by VBN was 0.810., Conclusion: The distance by VBN and lesion diameter were predictive of the diagnostic rates of primary lung cancer by bronchoscopy in patients with peripheral lung lesions., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: Effectiveness of restricting healthcare providers (HCPs) from working based on the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-like symptoms should be evaluated., Methods: A total of 495 HCPs in a tertiary care hospital in Tokyo, Japan, participated in this study between June and July in 2020. Analysis of serum anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibody to identify infected HCPs, questionnaire surveys, and medical record reviews were conducted to evaluate the appropriateness of symptom-based work restriction for 10 days., Results: Five participants (1.0%) were identified as infected. Forty-six participants (9.3%) experienced work restriction and all 5 infected participants (10.8%) restricted working, even though the real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction was positive only in 4 participants (80.0%). There were no unexpectedly infected participants among those who did not experience work restriction. However, only 46 of 110 HCPs with COVID-19-like symptoms (41.8%) restricted themselves from working., Discussion: Symptom-based work restriction strategy successfully prevented infected HCPs to work, but showed low specificity to identify truly infected HCPs, and their low adherence to the strategy was revealed., Conclusions: HCPs with COVID-19-like symptoms should restrict working as the first step of infection prevention, but the strategy to identify truly infected HCPs is necessary., (Copyright © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)