Bronchial thermoplasty for severe uncontrolled asthma in Japan

Publication date: Available online 29 July 2017
Source:Allergology International
Author(s): Motoyasu Iikura, Masayuki Hojo, Naoko Nagano, Keita Sakamoto, Konomi Kobayashi, Shota Yamamoto, Masao Hashimoto, Satoru Ishii, Shinyu Izumi, Haruhito Sugiyama




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Occupational allergy to Triticum spelta flour

Publication date: Available online 29 July 2017
Source:Allergology International
Author(s): Gemma Mencia, David El-Qutob, Fernando Pineda, Miriam Castillo




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An analysis of factors related to the effect of sublingual immunotherapy on Japanese cedar pollen induced allergic rhinitis

Publication date: Available online 29 July 2017
Source:Allergology International
Author(s): Syuji Yonekura, Yoshitaka Okamoto, Daiju Sakurai, Kimihiro Okubo, Minoru Gotoh, Shinya Kaneko, Akiyoshi Konno
BackgroundSublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) can improve the symptoms of allergic rhinitis and modify its natural history; however, its efficacy varies among patients. This study aimed to determine which factors modify the effect of SLIT through post hoc analysis of a previous phase 3 trial of standardized Japanese cedar (JC) pollen extract (CEDARTOLEN^®).MethodsThe study included 482 patients who had previously completed a phase 3 trial during two seasons. The SLIT and placebo groups each contained 241 subjects. Because pollen dispersal differed in the two seasons, we identified good and poor responders from the SLIT group in the 2nd season. We compared patient baseline characteristics, changes in serum immunoglobulin, and severity of symptoms in the 1st season between good and poor responders, as well as between SLIT and placebo groups.ResultsWhen we compared the baseline characteristics of good and poor responders, a significant difference was observed in body mass index (BMI) such that the patients with BMI ≥25 presented with lower treatment efficacy. No significant difference was observed in correlation with any other factors or treatment-induced alterations of serum immunoglobulin levels. We found that 75.3% of the patients with moderate symptoms and 50.9% of the patients with severe or very severe symptoms in the 1st season met our criteria for good responders in the 2nd season.ConclusionsBMI might modify the effect of SLIT; however, other factors were not related clearly. The severity of symptoms in the 1st season of treatment does not predict that in the 2nd season.



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Effects of prostaglandin E2 on clonogenicity, proliferation and expression of pluripotent markers in human periodontal ligament cells

Publication date: November 2017
Source:Archives of Oral Biology, Volume 83
Author(s): Avirut Truntipakorn, Anupong Makeudom, Thanapat Sastraruji, Prasit Pavasant, Kassara Pattamapun, Suttichai Krisanaprakornkit
Background and objectiveBased on our earlier work on the response of periodontal ligament (PDL) cells to mechanical stress by induction of cyclooxygenase expression and production of prostaglandin PGE2 that could regulate mineralization of PDL cells, it was hypothesized that PGE2 had potential effects on PDL stemness. In this study, we aimed to investigate clonogenicity, proliferation and expression of certain pluripotent markers, considered to be characteristics of PDL stemness, in response to treatment with exogenously-added PGE2.Material and methodsHuman PDL cells were cultured and treated with various doses of PGE2, and the aforementioned characteristics of PDL stemness were analyzed.ResultsThe clonogenicity and proliferation were significantly enhanced by PGE2 at low concentrations (0.01, 0.1 and 1ng/ml; P<0.05), but only the proliferation was significantly diminished by PGE2 at a high concentration (100ng/ml; P<0.05). Expression of NANOG and OCT4 mRNA and protein was increased by PGE2 treatment at 0.1 and 1ng/ml. Consistently, expression of stage-specific embryonic antigen 4, a putative stem cell marker, was significantly augmented by PGE2 treatment at 1ng/ml (P<0.05).ConclusionOur findings suggest that although a high dose of PGE2 (100ng/ml) inhibits proliferation of PDL cells, PGE2 at low doses appears to play a role in the maintenance of PDL stemness.



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Evidence of surgical treatments for intractable Meniere’s disease

Publication date: Available online 29 July 2017
Source:Auris Nasus Larynx
Author(s): Tadashi Kitahara
Meniere's disease is an inner ear disease, characterized by recurrent rotatory vertigo, sensorineural hearing loss and tinnitus. There are some with frequent vertigo attacks, progressive hearing loss and persistent annoying tinnitus even through the continuous standard medical treatments. These cases are thought to account for 10%–20% of all cases of Meniere's disease. In this review article, we would like to demonstrate the evidences for surgical treatments according to the previous papers, and consider the next therapeutic strategies including surgical options according to the international guidelines.



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The applicability of new TNM classification for humanpapilloma virus-related oropharyngeal cancer in the 8th edition of the AJCC/UICC TNM staging system in Japan: A single-centre study

Publication date: Available online 29 July 2017
Source:Auris Nasus Larynx
Author(s): Daisuke Sano, Kenichiro Yabuki, Yasuhiro Arai, Teruhiko Tanabe, Yoshihiro Chiba, Goshi Nishimura, Hideaki Takahashi, Shoji Yamanaka, Nobuhiko Oridate
ObjectiveThe purpose of this study is to validate the applicability of new TNM classification for human papillomavirus (HPV)-related oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) in the 8th edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC)/Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) TNM staging system in Japan.MethodsA total of 91 OPC patients treated with radiation-based therapy between January 2011 and December 2016 were analyzed retrospectively in this study. HPV infection status was evaluated using tumor p16 expression.Results40 OPC patients (44.0%) had HPV-positive disease in this study. The distribution of disease stage of HPV-positive OPC patients dramatically changed from the 7th edition to the 8th edition of AJCC/UICC TNM classification. However, neither the 8th edition nor the 7th edition of the AJCC/UICC TNM staging system could adequately predict outcomes of HPV-positive OPC patients in our patient series. On the other hand, our multivariate analysis indicated that matted nodes and age ≥63 were independent prognostic factors for progression-free survival. In addition, HPV-positive OPC patients with stage I without matted nodes showed significantly better OS and PFS compared with those with stage I with matted nodes and stages II and III in the 8th edition of the AJCC/UICC TNM staging system (P=0.008, and P=0.043, respectively).ConclusionOur results suggested that matted nodes of HPV-positive OPC patients might be additionally examined to apply the 8th edition of AJCC/UICC TNM classification for more adequate predicting outcomes of HPV-positive OPC patients.



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Editorial Board

Publication date: September 2017
Source:European Annals of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Diseases, Volume 134, Issue 4





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