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Rationale: Various treatments are available for treating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The immune checkpoint inhibitor combination of atezolizumab plus bevacizumab was recently approved for the treatment of unresectable HCC, but there are few reports on the failure of the combination treatment. Here, we present a case of unresectable HCC with adrenal metastasis that was eventually operated on after lenvatinib (LEN) treatment that followed failed treatment with atezolizumab plus bevacizumab., Patient Concerns: A 68-year-old man was diagnosed with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis-based HCC with adrenal metastasis., Diagnosis: Cirrhosis was classified as Child-Pugh score of 5. HCC was diagnosed as Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage C., Interventions: We initiated treatment with atezolizumab plus bevacizumab. Liver dysfunction appeared 2 days after the first administration but was improved by intravenous rehydration and did not appear after the second course. The HCC shrank, but the adrenal metastasis grew bigger after the fourth course, so we changed the therapy to LEN. After HCC and adrenal metastasis were necrotic by LEN, conversion surgery was performed., Outcomes: After successful conversion therapy, the general condition of the patient was good, and has been carefully followed for 4 months to date without any evidence of further recurrences., Lessons: This case showed that even if atezolizumab plus bevacizumab is not effective, multidisciplinary treatment such as LEN and conversion surgery is possible. Given the efficacy of LEN after atezolizumab plus bevacizumab, it is important to consider that there is a possibility of cure even when first-line treatment is not effective for a patient with unresectable HCC., Competing Interests: The authors have no funding and conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2021 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)

Abstract: End-of-life advance care planning (ACP) has become increasingly important in home care setting. In facilitating ACP discussion in home care setting, accurate understanding of patients' survival would be beneficial because it would facilitate healthcare professionals to individualize ACP discussion. However, little is known about survival outcome of home care patients. This study aimed to clarify the outcome of patients and identify factors to better predict the survival outcome of home care patients with the focus on patients' primary diseases.We conducted a retrospective analysis using data from 277 patients managed at a home care clinic in Japan and first treated in 2017 or 2018. Data regarding sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, and clinical outcome on December 31, 2019 were extracted. Using Kaplan-Meier product-limit method, we estimated the overall 30 days, 90 days, 1 year, and 3 year survival probabilities among the entire patients and their differences according to their primary disease. We also evaluated whether outcomes differed based on the primary disease or other factors using the hazard ratio and Cox proportional hazards regression.The overall survival probability was 82.5% at 30 days, 67.8% at 90 days, 52.7% at 1 year, and 39.1% at 3 years. The survival rates at 30 days, 90 days, 1 year, and 3 years were 64.6%, 33.4%, 9.5%, and 4.1% among cancer patients; 91.9%, 86.4%, 78.1%, and 47.0% among dementia patients; and 91.9%, 86.4%, 78.1%, and 47.0% among patients with other nervous and cerebrovascular diseases, respectively. Cox proportional hazard regression clarified that cancer patients (hazard ratio 6.53 [95% CI 4.16-10.28]) and older adults (hazard ratio 1.01 [95% CI 1.00-1.02]) were significantly more likely to die than dementia patients and young patients, respectively.Primary disease had a significant influence on the prediction of survival time and could be a useful indicator to individualize ACP in home care setting., Competing Interests: The authors have no funding and conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2021 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)

Rationale: Computer-assisted detection (CAD) systems based on artificial intelligence (AI) using convolutional neural network (CNN) have been successfully used for the diagnosis of unruptured cerebral aneurysms in experimental situations. However, it is yet unclear whether CAD systems can detect cerebral aneurysms effectively in real-life clinical situations. This paper describes the diagnostic efficacy of CAD systems for cerebral aneurysms and the types of cerebral aneurysms that they can detect., Patient Concerns: From March 7, 2017 to August 26, 2018 we performed brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans for 1623 subjects, to rule out intracranial diseases. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records including the history and images for each patient., Diagnoses, Interventions and Outcomes: Among them, we encountered 5 cases in whom the cerebral aneurysms had been overlooked in the first and second round of imaging, and were detected for the first time by CAD. All missed aneurysms were less than 2 mm in diameter. Of the 5 aneurysms, 2 were internal carotid artery (ICA) paraclinoid aneurysms, 2 were Internal carotid-posterior communicating artery (IC-PC) aneurysms and 1 was a distal middle cerebral artery (MCA) aneurysm., Lessons: Our CAD system can detect very small aneurysms masked by the surrounding arteries and difficult for radiologists to detect. In the future, CAD systems might pave the way to substitute the workload of diagnostic radiologists and reduce the cost of human labor.

Little is known about how emergency transfers take place and what outcomes they lead to in the patients who receive home care in Japan. We aimed to assess outcomes of emergency transfers and factors associated with such outcomes in the Japanese home care setting.A retrospective analysis of patient data from a home care clinic in Fukui, Japan, included all patients who experienced emergency transfers which were reported to the clinic during 2018 and 2019. We collected data on patients' sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, as well as the transfer process and its outcome, using patient charts and other administrative records. We first analyzed the overall outcome and then evaluated whether transfer outcomes would differ according to by whom and from where the emergency medical service (EMS) was called, by univariate and multivariate analyses.We considered 63 patients who experienced emergency transfers during the study period. Of the total, 10 (15.9%) returned to their residences without being admitted or being dead on arrival. Although only 2.6% (1/39) of patients whose transfers were determined by health care professionals (HCPs) returned home without being admitted, a direct return was observed for 37.5% (9/24) of patients whose transfer was determined by those other than HCPs (odds ratio of direct return to residences 22.80, 95% confidence interval 2.65-195.87). There was no other variable which was significantly associated with the outcomes after the emergency transfers, although all the patients who have no available caregivers resulted in hospitalization.In this preliminary analysis in the Japanese home care setting, only a small proportion of patients returned to their residences without being admitted following emergency transfers. Patients whose EMS transfer was requested by an HCP usually resulted in an admission to the clinic, whereas transfers requested by non-HCPs frequently did not.

Background: Intraoperative oxygen management is poorly understood. It was hypothesized that potentially preventable hyperoxemia and substantial oxygen exposure would be common during general anesthesia., Methods: A multicenter, cross-sectional study was conducted to describe current ventilator management, particularly oxygen management, during general anesthesia in Japan. All adult patients (16 yr old or older) who received general anesthesia over 5 consecutive days in 2015 at 43 participating hospitals were identified. Ventilator settings and vital signs were collected 1 h after the induction of general anesthesia. We determined the prevalence of potentially preventable hyperoxemia (oxygen saturation measured by pulse oximetry of more than 98%, despite fractional inspired oxygen tension of more than 0.21) and the risk factors for potentially substantial oxygen exposure (fractional inspired oxygen tension of more than 0.5, despite oxygen saturation measured by pulse oximetry of more than 92%)., Results: A total of 1,786 patients were found eligible, and 1,498 completed the study. Fractional inspired oxygen tension was between 0.31 and 0.6 in 1,385 patients (92%), whereas it was less than or equal to 0.3 in very few patients (1%). Most patients (83%) were exposed to potentially preventable hyperoxemia, and 32% had potentially substantial oxygen exposure. In multivariable analysis, old age, emergency surgery, and one-lung ventilation were independently associated with increased potentially substantial oxygen exposure, whereas use of volume control ventilation and high positive end-expiratory pressure levels were associated with decreased potentially substantial oxygen exposure. One-lung ventilation was particularly a strong risk factor for potentially substantial oxygen exposure (adjusted odds ratio, 13.35; 95% CI, 7.24 to 24.60)., Conclusions: Potentially preventable hyperoxemia and substantial oxygen exposure are common during general anesthesia, especially during one-lung ventilation. Future research should explore the safety and feasibility of a more conservative approach for intraoperative oxygen therapy.

Purpose: We report the 2 pediatric patients who had radiographic confirmation of a rare case of medial orbital wall "trapdoor" fracture with extraordinary symptoms of oculocardiac reflex (OCR)., Methods: This was a small interventional case series., Results: This is the retrospective report of 2 boys (13 and 10 years old) who developed diplopia, pain, nausea/vomiting, and general malaise following blunt trauma. However, the onset pattern of OCR was absolutely different: delayed onset of OCR just following therapeutic forced duction test to treat the orbital content herniation in the first case and a sudden onset after injury in the second case. In both cases, urgent surgery led to complete normalization of ocular motility., Conclusions: Prompt diagnosis and proper treatment are critical to maximize clinical outcome for this rare and critical trauma.

Background: Osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) of the capitellum is an intra-articular lesion and one of the leading causes of permanent elbow disability. The treatment of advanced capitellar OCD remains challenging because of the limited potential of the articular cartilage for self-repair. The purpose of this study was to investigate the outcome of surgical treatment for OCD of the capitellum., Methods: From 2000 to 2010, 32 male patients who had advanced lesions of capitellar OCD were treated operatively. The mean age of the patients was 14.4 years at the time of surgery. Twenty-nine patients played baseball and 3 played other sports. The lesions were of the centralized type in 9 patients, the lateral type in 4 patients, and the widespread type in 19 patients. For the surgical procedure, osteochondral peg fixation was selected for 13 patients and osteochondral autograft transplantation for 19 patients. Clinical outcome was measured with the elbow rating system including range of motion, and the number of patients who returned to active sports participation within 1 year after surgery was determined., Results: The mean total arc of elbow motion increased from 123±17 degrees preoperatively to 132±14 degrees postoperatively. The mean clinical score improved significantly from 133±24 to 177±27. Within the first year after surgery, 81.3% of the patients returned to active sports playing. However, 4 of 8 patients (50%) in which osteochondral peg fixation was performed for lesions of the lateral widespread type required reoperation., Conclusions: Our results indicate that osteochondral peg fixation and osteochondral autograft transplantation may improve elbow rating score, and may facilitate a return to active sports participation. However, osteochondral peg fixation may be insufficient for lesions of the widespread type because of their poor stability. The large lateral condyle lesions had a worse outcome, and future studies will need to develop improved treatment for these defects., Level of Evidence: Level IV (case series).

Background: Nasal bone fracture is a common injury, but its repair can be unexpectedly difficult. To date, intranasal gauze packing has been used to support the nasal bone in position and to maintain contact between the mucosa of the septum and the cartilage. This gauze packing, however, has a tendency to shift, resulting in an inflammatory response characterized by a foul odor until removal, which detracts from the comfort of the patient. We developed a novel device, the nasal bone clip (NBC), which provides a satisfactory nasal airway and improved comfort., Methods: A 1.2-mm Kirschner wire and a small piece of hydrocolloid wound dressing are used. The single wire is bent into a double-curved shape, after which each of the 2 tips is curled with pliers. The end of the wire in the nasal passage is covered with a piece of wound dressing to protect the mucosa. After reduction, the external portion of the wire is inserted on the surface of the splint., Results: The NBC was applied in 14 cases: 12 instances of fresh fractures and 2 of old fractures; there were 8 men and 6 women; their mean age was 19.9 years. Complications were not observed; moreover, no patients exhibited problems during the treatment., Conclusions: The advantages of the NBC are that all materials are available in the operating room or outpatient department, it is low cost, it is readily installable and detachable, it affords superior support for gauze packing, it provides effective external splinting with intranasal support, it never disturbs the nasal airway, and it offers comfort.

Surgical intervention consisting of lateral orbitotomy, the indication of which is extremely wide for orbital tumor surgery, has been applied in cases of large, retrobulbar cavernous hemangioma. However, no method exists involving displacement of the tumor from the crowded orbital contents, with the exception of tumor traction toward the outer side. The impact of traction force on the fragile hemangioma is extremely traumatic and dangerous. The authors examined how a tumor might be "displaced" in the absence of traction force effect, into an appropriate cavity neighboring the orbit. The maxillary sinus may afford the most suitable space to shift the laterally situated orbital tumor. Thus, the osteotomy level was extended to the lateral half of the inferior orbital floor and orbital rim in order to displace the tumor through an "escape window" of sufficient size between the orbit and maxilla. This report describes the treatment of two cases with long histories of progressive proptosis associated with retrobulbar large cavernous hemangiomas. This novel procedure resulted in a successful outcome. The current approach and management, which involves displacement of the tumor into the maxillary sinus through the orbital floor escape window, is a novel procedure for orbital tumor surgery.

Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) survive axotomy and regenerate their axons into the peripheral nerve graft in adult mammals. To understand the potential role of fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) in survival and regeneration of axotomized RGCs, we examined FGF receptor 1 (FGFR-1) localization in normal and PN grafted ferret retinas by immunohistochemistry in combination with retrograde labeling. Prominent expression of FGFR-1 was observed in outer plexiform layer and ganglion cell layer of normal ferret retina. In the ganglion cell layer, FGFR-1 immunoreactivity was detected in about 30% of RGCs, predominantly in large cells. In the PN grafted ferret retina, 90% of RGCs with regenerated axons expressed FGFR-1. Our findings suggest that FGFs may play an important role in the survival and axonal regeneration of RGCs of adult mammals.