Successful Administration of Kampo Medicine and Acupuncture Treatment to Improve Erythromelalgia: A Case Report.

Erythromelalgia is a rare disease characterized by a triad of recurrent burning pain, redness with pain, and hot flashes in the legs during attacks. We report the case of a 40-year-old woman who suffered from refractory erythromelalgia for 15 years and was successfully managed with Kampo medicine and acupuncture. Her pain was refractory to seven types of oral medications and intravenous lidocaine injections. Byakkokaninjinto was also administered for concomitant polydipsia in addition to acupuncture, unseiin, orengedokuto, and sokeikakketsuto. Because erythromelalgia has no established treatment, traditional Kampo medicine combined with acupuncture may help improve the quality of life of affected patients.

Leiomyosarcoma arising from the ovarian vein as a gynecologic malignancy: Two case reports and a review of the literature.

Leiomyosarcoma arising from the ovarian vein has rarely been reported. Herein, we report two cases from a single institute. Given their direct connections to ovarian vessels, both leiomyosarcomas were initially suspected to be gynecological malignancies. In one case, leiomyosarcoma was discovered incidentally without any clinical symptoms; it had a close connection with the ovarian vein, was removed surgically, and the patient has survived for over 12 years. In another case, bowel obstruction caused by the tumor helped to identify metastatic leiomyosarcoma. Blood flow was supplied by the ovarian artery and grew into the lumen of the ovarian vein without invading adjacent organs. After surgical resection, the patient underwent 18 months of chemotherapy prior to palliative care. We propose that leiomyosarcoma arising from the ovarian vein should be treated as a gynecologic malignancy, especially if it develops in the lower abdomen.

A Case of Undifferentiated Carcinoma in a 2-Month Postpartum Reproductive Tract with a Rapid and Fulminant Course.

Advanced carcinoma of the lower female reproductive tract is rare during pregnancy and the postpartum period. We here present a case of a 32-year-old Japanese woman, whose entire lower reproductive tract had been invaded by carcinomas as of 2 months after childbirth. She had been infertile, and pregnancy had been established by repeated embryo transfer. The gynecological cancer screening, which included Pap smear tests, was negative during the periods she underwent infertility treatment or during the first trimester. At 26 gestational weeks, the patient noticed uterine contractions concomitant with genital bleeding. Labor progressed slowly and steadily; thus, the pregnancy was ended by cesarean section at 29 weeks. At 2 months after childbirth, the patient experienced increased left abdominal pain and underwent a pelvic examination, revealing multiple pelvic masses and diffuse vaginal tumors causing stenosis. Vaginal tumors were biopsied, and histochemical analysis showed undifferentiated carcinoma with possible adenocarcinoma. Imaging modalities including CT, MRI, and PET-CT suggest that the carcinoma had invaded the entire reproductive tract, especially the uterine body, metastasized into the lungs and the ischial bones, and disseminated onto the peritoneum. She received multiple rounds of chemotherapy but died 6 months after childbirth. Taking into consideration the clinical feature and immunohistochemical profiles of the cancer cells, the endometrium is the most likely origin.

X-linked agammaglobulinemia in a 10-year-old boy with a novel non-invariant splice-site mutation in Btk gene.

X-linked agammaglobulinemia (XLA) is a primary immunodeficiency disease caused by mutations in the gene coding for Bruton's tyrosine kinase (Btk). Most XLA patients have severely reduced or absent peripheral blood B cells and serum immunoglobulins, since the expression or function of Btk, critical for the maturation of B cell lineages at pro-B and pre-B cell stages, is deficient. Early and accurate diagnosis of XLA is important, since the affected patients suffer from severe and recurrent infections unless they receive intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) replacement therapy. However, the diagnosis of XLA is not always easy because some patients have detectable ( approximately 2%) B cells in the peripheral blood and have significant levels of serum immunoglobulins. In this study, we report on a patient who was diagnosed with XLA at the age of 10years. The diagnosis was delayed due to near-normal levels of serum immunoglobulins, although he presented with severe and recurrent bacterial infections since the age of 1year. He was demonstrated to have a novel non-invariant splice-site mutation in intron 10 (IVS10 -11C-->A) of the Btk gene, which was not detected by the standard PCR-based mutation analysis. This mutation resulted in no detectable Btk expression. This case suggests that patients suffering from severe or recurrent bacterial infection should be suspected to have XLA even though they may have significant levels of serum immunoglobulins. Furthermore, significant levels of serum immunoglobulins in XLA patients do not necessarily mean less severe phenotype.

Tonsillar tuberculosis associated with pulmonary and laryngeal foci.

Tonsillar tuberculosis is one of the uncommon forms of extrapulmonary tuberculosis. We report a case of tonsillar tuberculosis associated with pulmonary and laryngeal foci. A 23-year-old female was admitted for evaluation of hoarseness and difficulty in swallowing. Bilateral palatine tonsils were enlarged, and a tonsillectomy was performed. Since a histological study revealed tonsillar tuberculosis, antituberculous agents were administered. After the treatment the pulmonary lesions detected with chest computed tomography were improved, and her symptoms were relieved. The possibility of tonsillar tuberculosis should be considered when unexplained enlarged tonsil is observed in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis.

Intravaginal bacterial flora in patients with uterine cervical cancer. High incidence of detection of Gardnerella vaginalis.

Gynecological diseases may affect the growth of vaginal bacterial flora. We investigated the relationship between uterine cervical cancer and the vaginal bacterial flora. In 20 patients with uterine cervical cancer, we investigated the intravaginal bacterial flora, including Gardnerella vaginalis and Mobiluncus spp. In the patients with uterine cervical cancer, there was a mixed flora of aerobes and anaerobes and, of special note, G. vaginalis was detected in 50% of the patients with uterine cervical cancer (10/20). Bacterial vaginosis was present in 8 of these 10 patients (80%). The count of G. vaginalis detected was higher than that of the other coexisting species and was higher in both pre- and postmenopausal patients with uterine cervical cancer than in a control group of pre- and postmenopausal women with benign gynecological diseases. In contrast, none of Mobiluncus spp. was detected. G. vaginalis was detected at a high incidence in patients with uterine cervical cancer, suggesting that the lesions of uterine cervical cancer provide favorable conditions for the growth of G. vaginalis and anaerobes, which leads to bacterial vaginosis.

Pelvic Abscess and Fungemia Caused by Candida Glabrata.

Serious infections caused by Candida glabrata, once rarely encountered, have become common. We report a case of pelvic abscess and fungemia caused by C. glabrata. A52-year-old woman developed fever, abdominal pain, and abdominal distention after a gynecologic operation. Empiric treatment with broadspectrum antimicrobial agents was not successful. Her blood culture was positive for C. glabrata, and the ultrasound examination revealed an encapsulated pelvic abscess. A culture of the pelvic abscess grew C. glabrata. Treatment was changed to amphotericin B, with complete clinical recovery. Serious C. glabrata infections are rare after gynecologic surgery, especially in immunocompetent patients. Given the morbidity and mortality associated with these infections, aggressive treatment with amphotericin B and drainage of abscesses should be performed.