[Pre-evening meal administration of tacrolimus improved refractory ocular symptoms in two young children with latent general myasthenia gravis].

We report two patients with latent general myasthenia gravis (MG) with refractory ocular symptoms who were successfully treated with pre-evening meal administration of tacrolimus. Patient 1 was a 4-year-old girl with persistent ocular symptoms despite high-dose steroid therapy and thymectomy. Oral tacrolimus was initiated at the age of 3 years, which was resulted in complete resolution of symptoms. After one year, hemilateral ptosis recurred. The plasma consentration of tacrolimus was very low, probably due to sudden weight gain. Increasing the dose and a change from post- to pre-evening meal administration of tacrolimus enabled maintenance of its concentration and complete control of ocular symptoms. Patient 2 was a 2-year-old boy whose symptoms were refractory to steroid therapy after his first relapse. Since post-meal administration of tacrolimus provided partial benefit, the closing schedule was changed to pre-evening meal administration, with good results. Neither patient had adverse effects of tacrolimus. It is difficult to maintain an effective tacrolimus concentration in children due to marked growth and rapid metabolic rates. Pre-evening meal administration of tacrolimus is an easy, safe and useful method of treatment in MG young children.

High-density areas on muscle CT in childhood-onset Pompe disease are caused by excess calcium accumulation.

We report two patients with childhood-onset Pompe disease showing striking changes with high-density areas on skeletal muscle CT, not seen in adult- or infantile-onset forms of this disease. While the anterior compartment of the thigh muscles was less affected in the adult-onset form, the rectus femoris and tibial muscles were preferentially involved from the early stage in the childhood-onset form of Pompe disease. The high-density areas became increasingly diffuse with disease progression, producing a marbled pattern and ultimately resulting in homogeneous high density and muscle atrophy. Muscle biopsy specimens from the high-density areas showed striking vacuolar changes with many dense globular bodies in lysosomes. High calcium signals were identified by X-ray microanalysis using energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy in these areas. Excess calcium accumulation in the vacuoles was also confirmed with the glyoxal-bis(2-hydroxyanil) (GBHA) staining. The high density on CT was slightly reduced together with clinical improvement after enzyme replacement therapy in patient 2. Our data demonstrate that in childhood-onset Pompe disease, high-density areas on skeletal muscle CT images are due to the accumulation of calcium in dense globular bodies formed by a chronic degenerative process affecting autophagic vacuoles.

[Treatment approach to congenital myasthenic syndrome in a patient with acetylcholine receptor deficiency].

Congenital myasthenic syndromes (CMS) are rare heterogeneous disorders of neurotransmission caused by genetic defects of neuromuscular junction molecules. While CMS patients have been reported worldwide, in Japan there have been only a few descriptions of adult CMS patients with acetylcholinesterase (AChE) deficiency and slow channel syndrome. Herein, we report a Japanese CMS patient with acetylcholine receptor (AChR) deficiency, diagnosed during childhood, and our treatment approach to the patient. This 13-year-old Japanese boy had had severe myasthenic symptoms since infancy. Ptosis, his first symptom, appeared at 5 months and nasal voice was recognized at 2 years of age. AchR and anti-muscle-specific tyrosine kinase (Musk) antibody remained negative. A positive tensilon test and decremental response on electromyogram supported the diagnosis of sero-negative myasthenia gravis. Despite thymectomy and strong immunosuppressive therapy including steroid pulse and FK 506, he gradually deteriorated and became wheelchair bound. Genetic analyses for AchR, Rapsyn, Musk and AChE were negative. At age 11 years, a muscle biopsy was performed in the deltoid muscle for neuromuscular junction sampling. Electron microscopic and confocal microscopic analysis of endplates showed almost complete loss of AChR and the diagnosis of CMS with AChR deficiency was confirmed. All immunosuppressive therapies were discontinued. Instead, we started Ubretide and 3,4-diaminopyridine (DAP) after obtaining informed consent. Although not approved in Japan for this use, 3,4-DAP is reportedly effective in refractory cases of CMS. The patient experienced no side effects. Despite all of the objective data were improving, his subjective symptoms and ADL remained poor. There are still many challenges in the treatment of the patient.

Benefits of FK 506 for refractory eye symptoms in a young child with ocular myasthenia gravis.

Recently, there have been many reports on the efficacy and safety of tacrolimus (FK506) treatment for adult patients with intractable generalized myasthenia gravis (MG). There have also been a few reports of successful FK506 therapy in patients with severe childhood-onset generalized MG involving a myasthenic crisis. Herein, we report the efficacy of FK 506 for refractory ocular symptoms in a 3-year-old girl with ocular type MG. Ptosis and alternating strabismus had appeared at 10 months of age. No bulbar signs, respiratory failure or generalized muscle weakness had been seen during her course. Her ocular symptoms had persisted despite repeated steroid pulse therapy, high dose oral prednisolone and thymectomy. Adverse effects of steroids, including obesity, growth retardation, osteoporosis, cataracts and hyperlipidemia, gradually worsened. After obtaining written informed consent from her parents, we started oral tacrolimus at a dose of 0.5mg/day and her symptoms resolved completely within 3 weeks at a maximum dose of 2.5mg/day. No adverse effects, such as renal failure or glucose intolerance, were seen. FK506 treatment allowed the steroid dose to be reduced, eliminating its adverse effects. In patients with intractable childhood-onset MG with ocular manifestations, FK506 is an alternative to steroid therapy or thymectomy.

A survey of consumers' attitudes towards online purchase of contact lenses in Japan.

A survey with 324 respondents was conducted to explore factors influencing Japanese consumers' intentions to use the internet for the purchase of contact lenses. Analysis of the results revealed four types of consumers: (a) those who were strongly against using contact lenses and as a result did not intend to use the internet for their purchase, (b) those who had positive attitudes towards use of the internet for purchasing contact lenses, (c) those who preferred the current situation of purchasing contact lenses without using the internet and (d) those who were not unfavourable to purchase contact lenses via the internet.

A case of megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts (van der Knaap disease): molecular genetic study.

Megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts (MLC) is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by macrocephaly, deterioration of motor function with ataxia, spasticity and mental decline. It has been revealed that the mutations in the gene, KIAA0027, were responsible for MLC and the gene was renamed subsequently 'MLC1'. A 41-year-old Japanese male with MLC, in whom a homozygous missense mutation, TCG to TTG at codon 93 resulting in S93L, was detected in the MLC1 gene, was described. MRI revealed marked cerebral atrophy and enlargement of the ventricular system. The subject's motor function had severely deteriorated, while his cognitive function had maintained at the level of a 2-year-old for the past 10 years. The mutation in the MLC1 gene of the patient is considered to be a common mutation responsible for MLC in Japanese patients because the same mutation had been detected in two other Japanese patients with MLC.

[Mortality patterns of non-institutionalized severely retarded children in Tokyo--the third report 1999-2001].

We investigated mortality patterns of severely retarded children who were cared at their homes in Tokyo ten years after our first report. During the past two and a half years (from April 1999 to September 2001), we identified 41 fatal cases. The annual case fatality rate (the mortality rate among the investigated children) was 8.2@1000 in all the school-attending children and was 10.1@1000 in children with severe motor and intellectual disabilities. The rate was less than half of that in our past report and seemed to the lowest among those in several studies. Aggravation of basal disorders, severe respiratory infections and/or sepsis, and unexplained sudden death accounted for most of the death. We conclude that advance of medical service and the propagated medical education of teachers working for special schools play an important role to reduce the mortality in severely retarded children.