Association of Heavy Smoking With High Body Mass Index and Cardiovascular Risk Score in Japan.

Objective: Although smoking, an established cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, is a modifier of body mass index (BMI), studies are still lacking addressing a potential association between smoking and BMI or BMI-related risk factors in Asia. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between smoking and BMI or CVD risk factors in a working-age population in Japan.

Methods: Eight thousand eight hundred thirty-six male and seven thousand three hundred seventy female health checkup examinees in a single center without self-reported heart disease or stroke were analyzed by multiple regression analysis for an association between the smoking status (never, current, or past) or the number of cigarettes consumed (never (0/day), mild (< 10/day), moderate (10-19/day) or heavy (≧ 20/day)) and age-adjusted BMI.

Comprehensive and advanced T cell cluster analysis for discriminating seropositive and seronegative rheumatoid arthritis.

Objective: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is classified into seropositive (SP-RA) and seronegative (SN-RA) types, reflecting distinct immunological profiles. This study aimed to identify the T cell phenotypes associated with each type, thereby enhancing our understanding of their unique pathophysiological mechanisms.

Methods: We analyzed peripheral blood T cells from 50 participants, including 16 patients with untreated SP-RA, 17 patients with SN-RA, and 17 healthy controls, utilizing 25 T cell markers.

Effect of riociguat on exercise following balloon pulmonary angioplasty in patients with inoperable chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension in Japan (THERAPY-HYBRID-BPA): a multicentre, double-blind, randomised, controlled, phase 4 trial.

Background: Balloon pulmonary angioplasty (BPA) and medical therapy are the most common treatment options for inoperable chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH), but their combined use has not been sufficiently studied. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy during an exercise test and the safety of the continuation of riociguat post-BPA in patients with inoperable CTEPH and normalised haemodynamic variables.

Methods: This multicentre, double-blind, randomised, controlled, phase 4 trial was conducted at four high-volume CTEPH centres in Japan.

Clinical and genetic characteristics based on the Japanese patient registry for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy: a nationwide analysis.

The Japanese patient registry for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) was launched in September 2020, enrolling patients genetically confirmed to have FSHD. This study aimed to analyze clinical and genetic characteristics based on data from the Japanese FSHD registry. Core items were collected from the TREAT-NMD FSHD dataset, version 1.

Intermittent versus Daily Therapy for Noncavitary Complex Pulmonary Disease: An Open-Label Randomized Trial.

Patients with noncavitary nodular bronchiectatic (NB) complex pulmonary disease (MAC-PD) are treated intermittently three times per week, although no randomized controlled trials have been conducted comparing three times weekly with daily therapy. To assess the tolerability, safety, and efficacy of intermittent versus daily treatment in patients with previously untreated noncavitary NB MAC-PD. In an open-label study, patients were randomly assigned to the intermittent therapy group receiving clarithromycin 1,000 mg, rifampicin 600 mg, and ethambutol 25 mg/kg (maximum 1,000 mg) three days per week or the daily therapy group receiving clarithromycin 800 mg, rifampicin 450 mg, and ethambutol 15 mg/kg (maximum 750 mg) daily for 1 year.

Sirolimus treatment for intractable vascular anomalies (SIVA): An open-label, single-arm, multicenter, prospective trial.

Background: Intractable vascular anomalies (VAs), including vascular tumors and venous, lymphatic, and mixed malformations, often have severe symptoms and a poor prognosis, highlighting the need for new treatments. We conducted a prospective trial of sirolimus (tablet and granule forms) for the treatment of VAs.

Methods: In this open-label, single-arm, multicenter trial across four Japanese institutions, patients with VAs received oral sirolimus daily, targeting a trough concentration of 5-15 ng/mL.

Pembrolizumab and Pemetrexed for Older Patients With Nonsquamous NSCLC and Programmed Cell Death-Ligand 1 Tumor Proportion Scores of Less Than 50.

Introduction: Pembrolizumab with pemetrexed and cisplatin/carboplatin is an approved first-line treatment for metastatic nonsquamous NSCLC. Nevertheless, its efficacy and safety in patients aged 75 years and above remain unclear. We assessed the efficacy and safety of pembrolizumab with pemetrexed in patients with programmed cell death-ligand 1 expression tumor proportion scores of less than 50%.

Efficacy of tranilast in preventing exacerbating cardiac function and death from heart failure in muscular dystrophy patients with advanced-stage heart failure: a single-arm, open-label, multicenter study.

Background: Transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily V member 2 (TRPV2) functions as a stretch-sensitive calcium channel, with overexpression in the sarcolemma of skeletal and cardiac myocytes leading to detrimental calcium influx and triggering muscle degeneration. In our previous pilot study, we showed that tranilast, a TRPV2 inhibitor, reduced brain natriuretic peptide levels in two patients with muscular dystrophy and advanced heart failure. Building on this, we performed a single-arm, open-label, multicenter study herein to evaluate the safety and efficacy of tranilast in the treatment of advanced heart failure in patients with muscular dystrophy.

The preferable position for quantifying left ventricular diameter by transthoracic echocardiography.

Background: In quantifying left ventricular (LV) diameter, which position for echocardiographic measurements, mitral valve tip level (MV-tip) or LV mid level (LV-mid), more accurately represents the LV volume is unclear. Furthermore, which factor affects the measurement error also has not been elucidated.

Methods: We enrolled 150 patients without myocardial infarction and local asynergy who underwent echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI).

Smartphone-based distress screening, information provision, and psychotherapy for reducing psychological distress among AYA cancer survivors: protocol for a fully decentralized multicenter randomized controlled clinical trial.

Fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) is a common and distressing condition among adolescents and young adults (AYAs). This study aims to investigate the efficacy of digital interventions, including distress screening-based information provision and smartphone problem-solving therapy, on common psychological distress, especially FCR, in AYA patients with cancer. Participants will be 224 AYA outpatients with cancer aged 15-39 years who will be randomly assigned to either an 8-week smartphone-based intervention or a waitlist control group.

Defining a learning curve for urology trainees to achieve renal access without complications in endoscopic combined intrarenal surgery.

Objectives: There is a lack of data on the number of surgeries required for endoscopic combined intrarenal surgery (ECIRS). Accordingly, we aimed to identify the learning curve for ECIRS performed by multiple surgeons.

Methods: We included 296 patients who underwent ECIRS at our university hospital between 2016 and 2021.

Association between marital satisfaction of female patients with persistent depressive disorder, and their own and husbands' autism spectrum disorder or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder traits.

Aim: Patients' and spouses' neurodevelopmental traits may influence marital relationships, which are significantly associated with depressive symptoms. However, no studies have examined marital relationships in persistent depressive disorder (PDD) in terms of neurodevelopmental traits. This study aimed to explore the association between the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) traits of female PDD patients and both partners' (patient and husband) marital satisfaction.

Rituximab-combined anthracycline-free chemotherapy in newly diagnosed paediatric and adolescent patients with non-high-risk aggressive mature B cell lymphoma: protocol for a single-arm, open-label, multicentre, phase II study (the Japan Children's Cancer Group Multicentre Trial, JPLSG B-NHL-20).

Introduction: Children and adolescents with mature B cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL) are treated with short-intensive chemotherapy. The burden of short-term and long-term toxicity is highly relative to its high cure rate in good-risk patients. Although the addition of rituximab to standard lymphome Malin B (LMB) chemotherapy markedly prolongs event-free survival and overall survival in high-risk patients, the benefit of rituximab in good-risk patients remains to be elucidated.

Three-dimensional computed tomography-based resection process map for robot-assisted partial nephrectomy: propensity score matching of a single-center retrospective study.

Background And Objectives: We aimed to examine the effect of preoperative three-dimensional (3D) computed tomography (CT)-based resection process map (RPM) imaging on the outcomes of robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN).

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 177 patients (RPM group, n = 92; non-RPM group, n = 85) who underwent this surgery between November 2012 and April 2022. Patient-specific contrast-enhanced CT images were used to construct an RPM, a 3D representation of the kidney showing the planned tumor resection and a 5 mm safety margin.

Impact of an angulated aorto-septal relationship on cardio-cerebrovascular outcomes in patients undergoing hemodialysis.

Aortic and valvular calcification are well-known risk factors for cardio-cerebrovascular events in patients undergoing hemodialysis. We investigated the clinical impact of an angulated aorto-septal angle as a result of aortic elongation due to aortic calcification on cardio-cerebrovascular outcomes in patients undergoing hemodialysis. We investigated 306 patients (mean age 65.

Outcomes of Cessation of Nucleos(t)ide Analog Administration on Hepatitis B Virus Reactivation after Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation: A Nationwide Retrospective Study.

Monitoring of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-DNA and HBV-DNA-guided preemptive therapy using nucleos(t)ide analogs (NAs) are recommended to prevent the development of hepatitis due to HBV reactivation after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) in recipients with resolved HBV infection. However, little is known about the appropriate duration of NA treatment and the effect of NA cessation on the recurrence of HBV reactivation. This study aimed to clarify the consequences of NA cessation in allo-HSCT recipients with resolved HBV infection who experienced HBV reactivation following transplantation.

Association between postinduction hypotension and postoperative mortality: a single-centre retrospective cohort study.

Purpose: We aimed to elucidate whether postinduction hypotension (PIH), defined as hypotension between anesthesia induction and skin incision, and intraoperative hypotension (IOH) are associated with postoperative mortality.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of adult patients with an ASA Physical Status I-IV who underwent noncardiac and nonobstetric surgery under general anesthesia between 2015 and 2021 at Nagoya City University Hospital. The primary and secondary outcomes were 30-day and 90-day postoperative mortality, respectively.

High-dimensional analysis of T-cell profiling variations following belimumab treatment in systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: This study sought to elucidate the molecular impacts of belimumab (BEL) treatment on T-cell immune profiling in SLE.

Methods: We used mass cytometry with 25 marker panels for T-cell immune profiling in peripheral blood T cells (CD3+) from 22 patients with BEL-treated SLE and 20 controls with non-BEL-treated SLE. An unsupervised machine-learning clustering, FlowSOM, was used to identify 39 T-cell clusters (TCLs; TCL01-TCL39).

Risk factors associated with overall survival in patients with multiple myeloma following carfilzomib treatment: A retrospective study from a large claims database in Japan.

Background: Carfilzomib is a selective proteasome inhibitor approved for treating relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). Carfilzomib improves overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS); however, treatment with carfilzomib results in a higher incidence of cardiovascular and renal toxicity. More than 70% of patients with RRMM in clinical practice do not meet the eligibility criteria for randomized clinical trials (RCT).

Prognostic impact of adjuvant endocrine therapy for estrogen receptor-positive and HER2-negative T1a/bN0M0 breast cancer.

Purpose: Mammography screening has increased the detection of subcentimeter breast cancers. The prognosis for estrogen receptor (ER)-positive and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative T1a/bN0M0 breast cancers is excellent; however, the necessity of adjuvant endocrine therapy (ET) is uncertain.

Methods: We evaluated the effectiveness of adjuvant ET in patients with ER-positive and HER2-negative T1a/bN0M0 breast cancer who underwent surgery from 2008 to 2012.