Internal medicine
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A 38-year-old man with deep vein thrombosis associated with Behçet's disease (BD) was admitted to our hospital due to worsening symptoms despite the initiation of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs). Administration of oral prednisolone and an intravenous anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) monoclonal antibody dramatically improved his symptoms. ⋯ BD also increases the risk of aortic aneurysms. This case suggests that immunosuppressive treatment is effective in patients with inflammation-related DOAC-refractory venous thrombosis who also suffer from BD.
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A 72-year-old woman had a history of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection previously treated with interferon to achieve a sustained virologic response. Thereafter, she developed polyarthritis and purpura of the lower extremities as well as progressive renal dysfunction with hypertension and proteinuria that had occurred in the last three months. Laboratory investigations revealed seropositivity for cryoglobulin but negative findings for HCV RNA. She was ultimately diagnosed with cryoglobulinemic glomerulonephritis complicated by monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) based on the pathological findings of the kidney and bone marrow, indicating that MGUS-induced cryoglobulinemic vasculitis may occur even after HCV elimination.
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Objective Anamorelin, a novel selective ghrelin receptor agonist, was approved in Japan for the treatment of cachexia in pancreatic cancer (PC), albeit with limited evidence. This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of anamorelin in PC and examined the impact of the extent of weight loss on the efficacy of anamorelin. Methods We retrospectively investigated consecutive PC patients with cachexia who received anamorelin at our institution between June 2021 and January 2022. ⋯ Conclusion The efficacy of anamorelin was associated with the extent of weight loss. Although anamorelin improved appetite in each weight-loss group, it increased body weight only in the moderate-weight-loss group. Anamorelin was well-tolerated among advanced PC patients, although caution must be practiced when it is used in patients with concomitant diabetes mellitus.
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Objective Pseudoaneurysm rupture associated with unresected pancreatic cancer can cause rare but fatal hemobilia and gastrointestinal bleeding. This study aimed to identify factors predicting pseudoaneurysm rupture. Methods We conducted a single-center case-control study of unresected pancreatic cancer patients treated at Shizuoka General Hospital between January 2011 and July 2020 using a retrospective cancer registry database. ⋯ In addition, patients who experienced successful hemostasis and were re-administered chemotherapy survived more than six months. Conclusion This study reveals that intratumoral air bubbles and hematemesis may predict pseudoaneurysm rupture at the onset of overt gastrointestinal bleeding. For patients presenting these findings, an examination with conventional or CT angiography may lead to an early diagnosis and improve the patient prognosis.
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Objective Both renal hypouricemia (RHU) and gout are associated with renal dysfunction and urolithiasis. The difference in renal complications associated with RHU and gout, however, has not been studied. We characterized the urate metabolism and complications of patients with RHU and compared them with patients with gout. ⋯ The prevalence of urolithiasis was 18.2% in RHU cases and 6.8% in gout cases. A homozygous URAT1 mutation was associated with urolithiasis. Conclusion Besides urolithiasis, RHU can be associated with tubular dysfunction, such as elevated urinary beta 2-microglobulin levels.