Electron Microscopy Revealed Massive Lipid Droplets in Cardiomyocytes in a Patient with Cardiogenic Shock Following a Fulminant Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus.

A 52-year-old man with consciousness disorder following a 2-day history of general fatigue, diarrhea, vomiting and excessive thirst was admitted to our hospital. Severe hyperglycemia (1,739 mg/dL) with a slightly elevated HbA1c level (6.9%), ketonuria and low C-peptide level (0.07 ng/mL) confirmed the diagnosis of fulminant type 1 diabetes mellitus (FT1DM). Following sudden unexplained cardiogenic shock shortly after the initiation of insulin therapy with no evidence of myocardial ischemia assessed by coronary angiography, the patient was supported with percutaneous venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Electron microscopic analysis of the myocardium revealed massive lipid droplets without the infiltration of inflammatory cells. His left ventricular function began to recover during the following days and returned to a normal level on day 14. Currently, the impact of FT1DM on intramyocardial lipid deposition is poorly understood. However, this case suggests that even short-term exposure to high concentrations of glucose can be responsible for lipotoxicity followed by severe cardiac dysfunction.

Successful Recovery from Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome and Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis with Standard Treatment and a Calcium Channel Blocker of Nicardipine Hydrochloride.

A 67-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with a high fever. Laboratory tests revealed leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, liver dysfunction, rhabdomyolysis, and hyperferritinemia. He was diagnosed with severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) complicated by hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis and treated with steroid therapy, intravenous calcium channel blocker (CCB), and supportive care, without favipiravir. Serum levels of ferritin and soluble interleukin 2 receptor (sIL2R) were markedly elevated on Day 3 after admission and decreased thereafter, while an SFTS viral load of 6.8×104 copies/µL was detected on Day 2, increasing to 2.9×105 copies/µL on Day 6. Serum ferritin and sIL2R levels may be better indicators of mortality than the SFTS viral load, and CCBs may have a therapeutic effect.

Successful Resuscitation of Cardiac Arrest After Refeeding Syndrome Associated with Hiatal Hernia: A Case Report.

BACKGROUND Refeeding syndrome (RFS) is a life-threatening syndrome, which can cause sudden death. RFS has been reported frequently in young patients with anorexia without organic disease; however, there are few reports in elderly patients with organic disease. Herein, we report a case of cardiac arrest after refeeding syndrome associated with hiatal hernia. CASE REPORT We report the case of a 59-year-old woman who had a diagnosis of RFS during treatment for anorexia secondary to hiatal hernia. She was hospitalized with hypothermia, anemia, and hypovolemic shock and treated with electrolytes, hydration, and transfusion at the Emergency Department. Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy revealed hiatal hernia with severe reflux esophagitis. We initiated parenteral nutrition (8.7 kcal/kg/day). However, QTc prolongation caused pulseless ventricular tachycardia. Temporary cardiac pacing was performed to prevent recurrence. Her nutritional status steadily improved, and she was transferred to another hospital without complications. CONCLUSIONS Patients with gastrointestinal comorbidities are more likely to have inadequate food intake and to be undernourished on admission and therefore should be carefully started on nutritional therapy, considering their risk of RFS.

A rare case of Reye's syndrome induced by influenza A virus with use of ibuprofen in an adult.

BACKGROUND: Reye's syndrome (RS) is a rare but severe acute life-threating disease characterized by encephalopathy and fatty liver damage. Reye's syndrome is most common in children and rarely occurs in adults. CASE PRESENTATION: A 56-year-old woman was admitted to the emergency department with disturbance of consciousness and respiratory failure. She had taken ibuprofen for headache. Her Glasgow Coma Scale score was E3V3M5 on admission. The laboratory findings revealed acute liver failure with prothrombin time - international normalized ratio of 3.16, aspartate aminotransferase 12,548 IU/L, alanine aminotransferase 5,725 IU/L, and blood ammonia 102 µg/dL. Head magnetic resonance imaging showed hyperintense signals on diffusion-weighed images of globus pallidus.We diagnosed the patient with RS induced by influenza A and use of ibuprofen. The patient received supportive care in the intensive care unit and her clinical outcome was favorable. CONCLUSION: Ibuprofen might be a risk factor for RS.

Loss of bone mineral density following sepsis using Hounsfield units by computed tomography.

AIM: To examine the change in vertebral bone mineral density (BMD) using abdominal computed tomography in patients treated for sepsis. METHODS: A single-center, retrospective, observational study was undertaken to evaluate BMD after critical care at Okayama Saiseikai General Hospital (Okayama, Japan) from January 2016 to April 2018. Sepsis was defined as an absolute increase of ≥2 in Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score in the intensive care unit or high care unit. Bone mineral density was evaluated in Hounsfield units (HU) by computed tomography. Patients were divided into groups based on the presence or absence of osteoporosis, which was defined as average vertebral body HU <110. Paired t-tests were used to compare the mean BMD of each vertebra between before and after critical care. We also analyzed accidental bone fracture events after discharge. The survival rate was analyzed as an outcome using the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: Fifty-two of 188 patients met the inclusion criteria. We found significant differences between admission and follow-up vertebral BMD values in the spine at the thoracic 12, lumbar 1-5, and sacrum 1 levels (P < 0.05), especially in the non-osteoporosis groups. No difference in mortality was observed between patients with osteoporosis and those without. Two of 19 patients with osteoporosis developed a bone fracture. CONCLUSION: We found that sepsis was associated with loss in BMD following critical care.

Antithyroid drug-associated MPO-ANCA-positive tubulointerstitial nephritis in a type 2 diabetes patient: a case report.

A 54-year-old man diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and hyperthyroidism was prescribed propylthiouracil (PTU) after the patient developed hepatic dysfunction on thiamazole. At 50 mg/day of PTU, he was stable with thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor and thyrotropic antibody titers remaining stable. After four years of taking PTU, he was referred to the Department of Nephrology due to a rapid increase in his serum creatinine (Cr) level. He showed impaired renal function (Cr 2.26 mg/dL; estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), 25 mL/min). In addition, urinary ß2-microglobulin (ß2 MG) was increased to 71,980 µg/L and was positive for myeloperoxidase (MPO)-anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA) (33.9 U/mL). Gallium scintigraphy demonstrated a remarkable accumulation in both kidneys. The patient was diagnosed with tubulointerstitial nephritis based on a renal biopsy, the results of which suggested that it might have been induced by PTU. He was treated with prednisolone (PSL) at 30 mg/day. As a result, within two weeks, Cr, eGFR, and urinary ß2 MG levels were progressively improved to 1.72 mg/dL, 34 mL/min, and 22,020 µg/L, respectively. Therefore, we tapered off the PSL with a dose of 5 mg/day after approximately one year. There have been no exacerbated renal function parameters. Although there are many reports on patients developing MPO-ANCA-positive crescentic glomerulonephritis after the administration of PTU, we report on a relatively rare case in which interstitial nephritis occurred after the administration of PTU.

Application of peritoneal dialysis in elderly patients by classifying the age into young-old, old, and oldest-old.

BACKGROUND: A greater number of end-stage renal disease patients are receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD) or hemodialysis (HD) in Japan. However, medical concerns with advancing age have been raised in PD utilization for elderly patients. The objective of this study was to address the indications for PD in elderly patients in terms of medical concerns such as nutrition state, residual renal function, dialysis efficiency, peritonitis, cardiovascular disease (CVD) complications, and technique survival. METHODS: In a retrospective, two-center study, we evaluated 247 patients who newly started PD from 2002 to 2008. All patients were divided into four groups: young (<64 years, n = 99), young-old (65-74 years, n = 55), old (75-84 years, n = 62) and oldest-old (≥85 years, n = 31). Serum albumin, hemoglobin, ß(2)-microglobulin, cardio-thoracic ratio, 24-hour urine collection and spent dialysate volume was collected at the initiation of PD and after 1, 2, 3, and 4 years. PD withdrawal, occurrence of CVD complications, peritonitis and death were recorded. RESULTS: Nephrosclerosis as a primary disease increased with advancing age (p = 0.001). At baseline, gender, body weight, serum creatinine, hemoglobin and cardio-thoracic ratio were significantly different among the four groups. No significant decrease was shown in urine output with advancing age. The spent dialysate volume was significantly lower (mean 3.8 liters/day) in the oldest-old group compared with the other groups (p = 0.001). However, a smaller volume of PD fluid in the oldest-old group was not accompanied by a significantly higher serum ß(2)-microgloblin level compared with the other groups and there was no reason of PD withdrawal for underdialysis in the old and oldest-old groups. Neither the incidence of CVD complications nor that of peritonitis was increased with advancing age. There was no significant difference in technique survival rate excluding death between each group. These findings suggest that there are no medical concerns to avoid PD therapy in elderly end-stage renal disease patients.