Isolated neurosarcoidosis with a primary lesion in the cauda equina.

A man in his late 50s without notable medical background was admitted with subacute onset of bilateral lower extremity weakness. Blood and physiological examinations revealed no significant abnormalities. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) examination revealed elevated cell count and protein levels and an immunoglobulin G index of 2.01. T1-weighted MRI showed swelling and enhancement of the cauda equina. After admission, the patient developed bowel and bladder incontinence, deteriorated to manual muscle test 0 and developed right trochlear, trigeminal and facial nerve palsy. He underwent a cauda equina biopsy and was diagnosed with neurosarcoidosis. After methylprednisolone pulse therapy and corticosteroid treatment, cauda equina syndrome including lower extremity weakness and cerebral nerve palsy improved. The patient's daily activities improved to the baseline level over 2 months after discharge. Serum and CSF soluble interleukin-2 receptor levels were within the reference range and decreased with the improvement of neurological and imaging findings.

Idiopathic hypertrophic pachymeningitis in a patient with a history of diffuse large B cell lymphoma.

A man in his early 70s with a 4-year history of diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) was admitted to our hospital with diplopia and achromatopsia. Neurological examination revealed visual impairment, ocular motility disorder and diplopia on looking to the left. Blood and cerebrospinal fluid investigations showed no significant findings. MRI revealed diffusely thickened dura mater and contrast-enhanced structures in the left apical orbit, consistent with hypertrophic pachymeningitis (HP). We performed an open dural biopsy to distinguish the diagnosis from lymphoma. The pathological diagnosis was idiopathic HP, and DLBCL recurrence was ruled out. Following methylprednisolone pulse and oral prednisolone therapy, his neurological abnormalities gradually receded. Open dural biopsy played an important role not only in diagnosing idiopathic HP but also in relieving the pressure on the optic nerve.

Safety and efficacy of transgraft internal trapping after proximal internal carotid artery ligation with high-flow bypass.

OBJECTIVE: Proximal internal carotid artery (ICA) ligation with high-flow bypass is an important vascular reconstructive technique for giant ICA aneurysms or skull base tumors involving the ICA to control intraoperative bleeding. Retrograde or collateral blood flow occasionally remains postoperatively and requires complete internal trapping. Although transgraft internal trapping is one of the options, there are few reports on transgraft treatment. The purpose of this study was to report our experience of transgraft internal trapping and evaluate the safety and efficacy of this procedure. METHODS: We retrospectively selected patients who underwent transgraft internal trapping after proximal ICA ligation with high-flow bypass between January 2012 and June 2020. RESULTS: We encountered five cases of this procedure (one aneurysm case and four tumor cases). The median duration between the bypass and transgraft internal trapping was 12 days. In four out of five cases, a guiding catheter could be placed in the graft. No disruption of the anastomosis was observed. Transgraft internal trapping was achieved in all five cases with detachable coils. All treatments could be completed safely without any adverse events, including ischemic and hemorrhagic complications. CONCLUSIONS: Transgraft internal trapping after proximal ICA ligation with high-flow bypass may be an option for preventing residual retrograde blood flow.

Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor-associated Cerebral Arterial Occlusive Disease Treated with High-flow Bypass Surgery: A Case Report.

Nilotinib, one of the tyrosine kinase inhibitors, has been used to treat chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL). Nilotinib-associated cerebral arterial occlusive disease, which is treated with medicine with/without bypass surgery or stenting, has been sporadically reported to occur. The mechanism of the nilotinib-associated cerebral disease has not been clarified and is still controversial. Here we present the case of a 39-year-old woman with Ph+ ALL treated with nilotinib, which led to symptomatic intracranial arterial stenosis. We performed high-flow bypass surgery and observed the arterial stenotic change in the stenotic portion intraoperatively, whose findings strongly supported the theory of atherosclerosis and seemed to be irreversible.

Spherical Image Generation From a Few Normal-Field-of-View Images by Considering Scene Symmetry.

Spherical images taken in all directions (360 degrees by 180 degrees) can represent an entire space including the subject, providing free direction viewing and an immersive experience to viewers. It is convenient and expands the usage scenarios to generate a spherical image from a few normal-field-of-view (NFOV) images, which are partial observations. The primary challenge is generating a plausible image and controlling the high degree of freedom involved in generating a wide area that includes all directions. We focus on scene symmetry, which is a basic property of the global structure of spherical images, such as the rotational and plane symmetries. We propose a method for generating a spherical image from a few NFOV images and controlling the generated regions using scene symmetry. We incorporate the intensity of the symmetry as a latent variable into conditional variational autoencoders to estimate the possible range of symmetry and decode a spherical image whose features are represented through a combination of symmetric transformations of the NFOV image features. Our experiments show that the proposed method can generate various plausible spherical images controlled from asymmetrically to symmetrically, and can reduce the reconstruction errors of the generated images based on the estimated symmetry.

Masked CKD in hyperthyroidism and reversible CKD status in hypothyroidism.

Introduction: While it is well known that thyroid function may affect kidney function, the transition of the chronic kidney disease (CKD) status before and after treatment for thyroid disorders, as well as the factors affecting this change, remains to be explored. In the present study, we focused on the change in kidney function and their affecting factors during the treatment for both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism. Methods: Eighty-eight patients with hyperthyroidism and fifty-two patients with hypothyroidism were enrolled in a retrospective and longitudinal case series to analyze the changes in kidney function and their affecting factors after treatment for thyroid disorders. Results: Along with the improvement of thyroid function after treatment, there was a significant decrease in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) in hyperthyroidism (an average ΔeGFR of -41.1 mL/min/1.73 m2) and an increase in eGFR in hypothyroidism (an average ΔeGFR of 7.1 mL/min/1.73 m2). The multiple linear regression analysis revealed that sex, eGFR, free thyroxine (FT4) and free triiodothyronine (FT3) could be considered independent explanatory variables for ΔeGFR in hyperthyroidism, while age, eGFR, and FT3 were detected as independent explanatory variables in hypothyroidism. In addition, the stratification by kidney function at two points, pre- and post-treatment for thyroid disorders, revealed that 4.5% of the participants with hyperthyroidism were pre-defined as non-CKD and post-defined as CKD, indicating the presence of "masked" CKD in hyperthyroidism. On the other hand, 13.5% of the participants with hypothyroidism presented pre-defined CKD and post-defined non-CKD, indicating the presence of "reversible" CKD status in hypothyroidism. Conclusions: We uncovered the population of masked CKD in hyperthyroidism and reversible CKD status in hypothyroidism, thereby re-emphasizing the importance of a follow-up to examine kidney function after treatment for hyperthyroidism and the routine evaluation of thyroid function in CKD patients as well as the appropriate hormone therapy if the patient has hypothyroidism.

Accelerating hologram generation using oriented-separable convolution and wavefront recording planes.

Recently, holographic displays have gained attention owing to their natural presentation of three-dimensional (3D) images; however, the enormous amount of computation has hindered their applicability. This study proposes an oriented-separable convolution accelerated using the wavefront-recording plane (WRP) method and recurrence formulas. We discuss the orientation of 3D objects that affects computational efficiency, which is overcome by reconsidering the orientation, and the suitability of the proposed method for hardware implementations.

Effects of Wnt-ß-Catenin Signaling and Sclerostin on the Phenotypes of Rat Pheochromocytoma PC12 Cells.

Pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas (PPGLs) are classified into 3 major categories with distinct driver genes: pseudohypoxia, kinase signaling, and Wnt-altered subtypes. PPGLs in the Wnt-altered subtype are sporadic and tend to be aggressive with metastasis, where somatic gene fusions affecting mastermind-like 3 (MAML3) and somatic mutations in cold shock domain containing E1 (CSDE1) cause overactivation of Wnt-ß-catenin signaling. However, the relation between Wnt-ß-catenin signaling and the biological behavior of PPGLs remains unexplored. In rat pheochromocytoma PC12 cells, Wnt3a treatment enhanced cell proliferation and suppressed mRNA expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), the rate-limiting enzyme of catecholamine biosynthesis, and dopamine secretion. We identified the expression of sclerostin in PC12 cells, which is known as an osteocyte-derived negative regulator for Wnt signaling-driven bone formation. Inhibition of endogenous Wnt pathway by XAV939 or sclerostin resulted in attenuated cell proliferation and increased TH expression. Furthermore, Wnt3a pretreatment suppressed bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-induced Smad1/5/9 phosphorylation whereas BMPs enhanced sclerostin expression in PC12 cells. In the Wnt-altered subtype, the increased Wnt-ß-catenin pathway may contribute the aggressive clinical behavior with reduced catecholamine production. Furthermore, upregulated expression of sclerostin by BMPs may explain the osteolytic metastatic lesions observed in metastatic PPGLs.

Real-valued diffraction calculations for computational holography [Invited].

Computational holography, encompassing computer-generated holograms and digital holography, utilizes diffraction calculations based on complex-valued operations and complex Fourier transforms. However, for some holographic applications, only real-valued holograms or real-valued diffracted results are required. This study proposes a real-valued diffraction calculation that does not require any complex-valued operation. Instead of complex-valued Fourier transforms, we employ a pure real-valued transform. Among the several real-valued transformations that have been proposed, we employ the Hartley transformation. However, our proposed method is not limited to this transformation, as other real-valued transformations can be utilized.

Carotid Endarterectomy.

Stroke is the second leading cause of death worldwide. One of the main causes of stroke is carotid artery stenosis. Stenosis with atherosclerosis in the carotid artery can cause stroke by hemodynamic ischemia or artery to artery embolism. A most common surgical intervention for carotid artery stenosis is carotid endarterectomy (CEA). Many studies on CEA have been reported and suggested medical indications. For symptomatic carotid stenosis, generally, CEA may be indicated for patients with more than 50% stenosis and is especially beneficial in men, patients aged 75 years or older, and patients who underwent surgery within 2 weeks of their last symptoms. For asymptomatic carotid stenosis, CEA may be indicated for those with more than 60% stenosis, though each guideline has different suggestions in detail. In order to evaluate the indication for CEA in each case, it is important to assess risks for CEA carefully including anatomical factors and comorbidities, and to elaborate each strategy for each operation based on preoperative imaging studies including carotid ultrasonography, magnetic resonance imaging and angiography. In surgery there are many tips on operative position, procedure, shunt usage and monitoring to perform a safe and smooth operation. Now that carotid artery stenting has been rapidly developed, better understanding for CEA is required to treat carotid artery stenosis adequately. This chapter must be a good help to understand CEA well.

Mitigating ringing artifacts in diffraction calculations using average subtractions.

Fourier transform-based diffraction calculations are essential for computational optics. However, the diffraction calculations can be corrupted by the introduction of strong ringing artifacts due to the introduction of zero-padding to avoid circular convolution or to control the sampling intervals. We propose a simple de-ringing method using average subtractions for application to on-axis and off-axis diffraction calculations. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed method, we compared the diffracted fields obtained using zero-padding, a flat-top window method, a mirror expansion method, and the whole and border average subtractions proposed. Furthermore, we confirmed the effectiveness of the proposed method for hologram calculations using double phase encoding and image reconstructions of inline digital holography.

An adrenal incidentaloma caused by synchronous and isolated metastasis.

We report a patient with adrenal incidentaloma due to synchronous and isolated metastasis from lung cancer, which is a relatively rare condition. Close checkups for incidentaloma in oncologic patients are mandatory, leading to successful operation.

Surgical Simulation with Three-Dimensional Fusion Images in Patients with Arteriovenous Malformation.

In arteriovenous malformation (AVM) surgery, vessel structures should be well evaluated with angiography. However, with conventional angiography, it is sometimes difficult to distinguish each feeder and its feeding territory in the nidus. In this study, we used two software systems to create three-dimensional (3D) fusion images using multiple imaging modalities and evaluated their clinical use. In the AVM patient, data were obtained from 3D rotational angiography, rotational venography, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and superimposed into 3D fusion images using imaging software (iPLAN and Avizo). Virtual surgical fields that were quite similar to the real ones were also created with these software programs. Compared with fusion images by iPLAN, those by Avizo have higher resolution and can demarcate not only each feeder but also its supplying territory in the nidus with different colors.In conclusion, 3D fusion images in AVM surgery are helpful for simulation, even though it takes time and requires special skill to create them.

Delayed Occlusion of the Anterior Choroidal Artery Following Flow Diverter Stent Deployment for Unruptured Aneurysm: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Flow diverter stent has been a promising device for intracranial aneurysm treatment. For treating aneurysms located in the anterior circulation, critical branches may be covered by flow diverter stent. The occlusion incidence of these branches has been reported, and even if branch vessel occlusions occur, associated neurological deficits are extremely rare. We present a 55-year-old woman who had a large saccular aneurysm at the right internal carotid artery (ICA). A developed fetal-type posterior communicating artery (PCOM) originated from the sac. We administered flow diverter stent deployment with coil insertion following surgical anastomosis of the superficial temporal artery to the posterior cerebral artery (STA-PCA) with ligation of the origin of the PCOM. On the seventh morning following the intervention, ischemic complication developed due to anterior choroidal artery occlusion jailed by the flow diverter stent. The occlusion of anterior choroidal artery covered by flow diverter stent is extremely rare. However, if the branch arises from the aneurysm sac, occlusion can transpire and induce serious complication. The most probable cause of occlusion in this case was that the orifice was jailed apart from the stent strut because the branch originated from the sac rather than the neck. Furthermore, the progression rate of intra-aneurysm thrombus formation is also an important factor affecting the side branch occlusion.

Large Cell Neuroendocrine Carcinoma in the Sinonasal Cavity with Large Intracranial Extension Treated with Endonasal Endoscopic and Transcranial Combined Surgery: A Case Report.

Large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC) is a rare malignant tumor that typically arises in the lungs. It is especially rare in the sinonasal cavity, and treatment has not been established. In this study, we present the case of a 56-year-old woman with a large sinonasal LCNEC that extended into her brain. We performed endonasal endoscopic and transcranial combined surgery followed by chemoradiation therapy. The combined surgery enabled us to approach and remove the extensive tumor from two different directions at one time less invasively. We have achieved good tumor control for 18 months so far.

Ankyloglossia Superior Syndrome With Complex Craniofacial Anomalies: Case Report and Literature Review.

Ankyloglossia superior syndrome is an extremely rare entity in which centrally located glossopalatine ankylosis is a principal feature. Some cases are accompanied by cleft palate, micrognathia, or tongue hypoplasia, and affected patients need careful nutritional and respiratory support. We describe a newborn girl in whom ankyloglossia superior syndrome comprised complex craniofacial malformations, including cleft palate, micrognathia, microglossia, and natal teeth as well as limb anomalies. Surgical treatment entailed release of synechiae, and glossopexy was performed successfully to prevent postsurgical airway complications and to ensure adequate nutrition by nipple feeding during infancy.

Extracranial carotid artery aneurysm with myeloproliferative neoplastic cell invasion.

The major causes of rare extracranial carotid artery aneurysms are arteriosclerosis, trauma, and radiation therapy. Here, we describe a patient with an extracranial carotid artery aneurysm caused by a myeloproliferative neoplasm. A 67-year-old woman underwent excision of an irregularly shaped aneurysm in the left common carotid artery and a saphenous vein graft without major complications. The pathologic findings revealed abscess formation and atypical megakaryocyte infiltration, which was also seen in her bone marrow, indicating that the aneurysm was caused by a myeloproliferative neoplasm.

Multiwavelength-multiplexed phase-shifting incoherent color digital holography.

We propose multiwavelength-multiplexed phase-shifting incoherent color digital holography. In this technique, a monochrome image sensor records wavelength-multiplexed, phase-shifted, and incoherent holograms, and a phase-shifting interferometry technique selectively extracts object waves at multiple wavelengths from the several recorded holograms. Spatially incoherent light that contains multiple wavelengths illuminates objects, and multiwavelength-incoherent object waves are simultaneously obtained without using any wavelength filters. Its effectiveness is experimentally demonstrated for transparent and reflective objects.

Pembrolizumab-induced hypothyroidism caused reversible increased serum creatinine levels: a case report.

BACKGROUND: The advent of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has significantly improved the prognosis of patients with advanced malignancies. On the other hand, these drugs might cause immune-related adverse events (irAEs) including endocrinopathies and nephropathies. Thyroid dysfunction is one of the most common irAEs. For ICIs-induced nephropathies, most cases are due to tubulointerstitial nephritis, which might require steroid treatment. Here, we report a patient with non-small cell lung cancer treated with ICI who developed increased serum creatinine (s-Cr) levels due to ICIs-induced hypothyroidism. CASE PRESENTATION: A 57-year-old Asian man with refractory non-small cell lung cancer under ICIs therapy (pembrolizumab, an anti-programmed cell death-1 monoclonal antibody) developed increased s-Cr levels 5 months after the pembrolizumab initiation. His laboratory data, renal biopsy, and Gallium-67 scintigraphy findings denied pembrolizumab-induced tubulointerstitial nephritis. His renal function was correlated with thyroid function. Despite the increase of s-Cr levels, serum cystatin C levels were normal, which could be explained by the hypothyroidism. Levothyroxine treatment improved renal function as well as thyroid function. Then pembrolizumab was resumed, and both his thyroid and renal function remained normal level. Ultimately, we concluded that the increased s-Cr levels were caused by pembrolizumab-induced hypothyroidism. CONCLUSION: All clinicians involved in ICI treatment need to recognize the possible increase in s-Cr levels caused by ICIs-induced hypothyroidism, and we propose monitoring serum cystatin C levels to differentiate ICIs-induced hypothyroidism from tubulointerstitial nephritis before invasive renal biopsies or steroid treatment, which are recommended by the prescribing information for pembrolizumab, are performed.

Effect of wooden breast on postmortem changes in chicken meat.

Wooden breast is a common problem in the poultry industry, occurring when broiler breast meat becomes rubber-like and extremely hard. Unclear points remain regarding the mechanical strength changes caused by post-mortem biochemical changes in wooden breasts. This study aimed to investigate this knowledge gap. We found endogenous protease activity to be high in wooden breasts and observed a 30 kDa fragment of troponin T (an indicator of postmortem tenderness) from day 1 postmortem. The amount of intramuscular connective tissue in wooden breasts was greater than that of normal breast meat, particularly in the perimysium. The intramuscular connective tissue structure and quantity significantly affect the mechanical strength of meat. It became clear that the wooden breasts are much more mechanically stronger than normal breasts at postmortem day 5 because the large amount of intramuscular connective tissue in the wooden breasts has hardly changed even 5 days postmortem.