Characteristics of submucosal leiomyomas that could cause severe hemorrhage with relugolix: an observational study.

BACKGROUND: Relugolix, an oral gonadotrophin-releasing hormone receptor antagonist, was launched in Japan in 2019. Although there have been several studies on relugolix for leiomyomas, few have focused on submucosal leiomyomas. Submucosal leiomyomas cause bleeding more frequently than leiomyomas in other locations. There is only one case report described a patient treated for a submucosal leiomyoma with relugolix who developed severe hemorrhage. However, it remains unclear which characteristics of submucosal leiomyomas can lead to severe hemorrhage. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics of submucosal leiomyomas that would cause severe hemorrhage when treated with relugolix. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed records of patients who underwent treatment for submucosal leiomyoma with relugolix (40 mg once daily for up to 6 months) in our institute between December 2019 and September 2021. We evaluated the clinical course and characteristics of submucosal leiomyoma in patients who developed severe hemorrhage. RESULTS: A total of 17 patients were treated for submucosal leiomyoma with relugolix. Two patients developed severe hemorrhage and required emergent surgery and blood transfusions. Only those two of the 17 patients had a submucosal leiomyoma of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) type 0, which has a stalk. In the remaining 15 patients who had FIGO type 1 or 2 leiomyoma, hemorrhage did not occur. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that the use of relugolix for FIGO type 0 leiomyomas may be associated with a risk of hemorrhage. However, relugolix may be a safe and effective treatment option for patients with FIGO type 1 or 2 leiomyomas.

[123I]Iomazenil SPECT Detects a Reversible Lesion of the Left Medial Temporal Lobe in a Case of Global Autobiographical Amnesia.

Global autobiographical amnesia is a rare disorder that is characterized by a sudden loss of autobiographical memories covering many years of an individual's life. Generally, routine neuroimaging studies such as CT and MRI yield negative findings in individuals with global autobiographical amnesia. However, in recent case reports, functional analyses such as SPECT and fMRI have revealed changes in activity in various areas of the brain when compared with controls. Studies using iomazenil (IMZ) SPECT with individuals with global autobiographical amnesia have not been reported. We report the case of a 62-year-old Japanese woman with global autobiographical amnesia who had disappeared for ∼4 weeks. [123I]-IMZ SPECT showed reduced IMZ uptake in her left medial temporal lobe and no significant reduction on N-isopropyl-[123I] p-iodoamphetamine (IMP) SPECT in the identical region. Because IMZ binds to the central benzodiazepine receptor, this dissociation between IMZ and IMP SPECT was thought to reflect the breakdown of inhibitory neurotransmission in the left medial temporal lobe. Moreover, when the woman recovered most of her memory 32 months after fugue onset, the IMZ SPECT-positive lesion had decreased in size. Because the woman had long suffered verbal abuse from her former husband's sister and brother, which can also cause global autobiographical amnesia, it is difficult to conclude whether the IMZ SPECT-positive lesion in the left medial temporal lobe was the cause or the result of her global autobiographical amnesia. Although only one case, these observations suggest that IMZ SPECT may be useful in uncovering the mechanisms underlying global autobiographical amnesia.

Hypoglycemic Coma in a Hemodialysis Patient Receiving Blood Glucose-Lowering Therapy With the Single Agent Teneligliptin.

Blood glucose management in patients undergoing dialysis is clinically challenging. In this population, most conventional oral hypoglycemic agents are contraindicated, especially from the perspective of pharmacokinetics. Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors exert unique pharmacologic actions via glucose-dependent mechanism and have an excellent tolerability profile with a very low risk of hypoglycemia. Furthermore, the literature reports that some dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors such as teneligliptin can be administered at the usual dose, regardless of a patient's level of renal impairment. In this article, we report a case of hypoglycemic coma with a blood glucose level of 23 mg/dL. The patient became fully conscious shortly after receiving a glucose injection; however, severe hypoglycemia recurred for approximately 1.5 days. It eventually disappeared on the discontinuation of teneligliptin, which was the only antidiabetic agent that he had received. The present case may provide deep insights into promoting the safe use of hypoglycemic agents in patients undergoing dialysis.