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Key Clinical Message Our patient was diagnosed as having discordant twin growth with Ebstein's anomaly in the larger fetus. Cardiac function was deteriorated in accordance with progression of gestational age. Our observation indicated cardiac failure of the larger fetus. The most important issue in this situation is management of the timing of delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purple urine bag syndrome is characterized by the urinary drainage bag turning purple in patients on prolonged urinary catheterization, especially those in the bedridden state. It is associated with bacterial urinary tract infections caused by indigo-producing and indirubin-producing bacteria, usually affects women, and is associated with alkaline urine, constipation, and a high bacterial load in the urine. Almost all patients with purple urine bag syndrome are catheterized due to significant disability, and the urinary pH is 7.0 or more. In general, intensive treatment with antibiotics is not recommended. Purple urine bag syndrome per se almost always appears to be asymptomatic and harmless. However, caution is needed, because some cases have been reported to show progression to severe disease states, so further research into the morbidity and mortality of this infection is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The previous study on prognosis of preterm premature rupture of fetal membranes (pPROM) near the limit of viability showed various survival rate raging from 26 to 57 %%. This may be partly due to the fact that treatment of prematurely born babies vary from one country to another, or sometimes within a single country. In Japan, resuscitation efforts are made to newborns of early gestational age, normally from 22 weeks of gestation., Objective: To assess the natural history and short- and long-term prognosis in pregnancies complicated by preterm premature rupture of membranes (pPROM) near the limit of viability in a hospital in Japan., Method: We conducted a single-center retrospective cohort study. Cases with diagnosis of pPROM at a gestational age of 20-23 6/7 weeks and delivered in our hospital between April 2007 and December 2017 were examined., Result: 66 cases were included and of those, 54 (81.1 %) newborns survived to discharge. Of the neonates who survived to discharge, 42 (77.8 % of survivors) experienced severe morbidity at the time of discharge. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that later gestational age at pPROM and longer latency period were significantly associated with survival with no severe morbidities (per one day increase, adjusted odds ratio (OR) 1.37, 95 % CI 1.03-1.83, p = 0.033 and per one day increase, adjusted OR 1.11, 95 % CI 1.02-1.21, p = 0.015). Of 23 cases followed at 36 months, 8 (34.8 %) showed developmental delay., Conclusion: The survival rate was significantly higher than the previous studies, yet many of the survivors experienced short-term severe morbidity. Of those who experienced short-term severe morbidity, however, more than half showed normal range development at 36 months., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no Conflict of Interest., (© 2019 The Authors.)

Cryoglobulins are immunoglobulins that precipitate at low temperatures and redissolve upon rewarming. Cryoglobulinemia refers to the presence of circulating cryoglobulins in serum, and generally leads to a systemic inflammatory syndrome characterized by fatigue, arthralgia, purpura, neuropathy and glomerulonephritis. The disease mainly involves small to medium-sized blood vessels and causes vasculitis due to cryoglobulin-containing immune complexes. Cryoglobulinemia is classified into three types (I, II and III) on the basis of immunoglobulin composition. Predisposing conditions include lymphoproliferative disease, collagen disease and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. The diagnosis of cryoglobulinemic syndrome is predominantly based on the laboratory demonstration of serum cryoglobulins. Treatment is often directed towards the underlying disease state. For patients with chronic HCV infection, anti-viral therapy is indicated. Intense immunosuppressive or immunomodulatory therapy, including steroids, plasmapheresis and cytotoxic agents, is reserved for organ-threatening or recalcitrant disease. In this review, we discuss the clinical characteristics of the three types of cryoglobulinemia.