Using 605 fb(-1) of data collected at the Upsilon(4S) resonance we present a measurement of the inclusive radiative B-meson decay channel, B-->X(s)gamma. For the lower photon energy thresholds of ...1.7, 1.8, 1.9, and 2.0 GeV, as defined in the rest frame of the B meson, we measure the partial branching fraction and the mean and variance of the photon energy spectrum. At the 1.7 GeV threshold we obtain the partial branching fraction BF(B-->X(s)}gamma)=(3.45+/-0.15+/-0.40)x10(-4), where the errors are statistical and systematic.
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CMK, CTK, FMFMET, IJS, NUK, PNG, UM
Many individuals with obstructive airway disease (OAD), including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma, remain undiagnosed, despite the potential for reducing disease burden ...through early detection and treatment. OCEAN aimed to determine the prevalence of, and characteristics associated with, impaired lung function in a Japanese population, with the goal of improving strategies for early OAD detection.
OCEAN was an observational, cross-sectional study in sequentially recruited Japanese individuals ≥40 years of age undergoing routine health examinations. Participants completed screening questionnaires and spirometry testing. Airflow limitation was defined as forced expiratory volume in 1 second/forced vital capacity (FEV
/FVC) <0.7 by pre-bronchodilator spirometry. Preserved ratio impaired spirometry (PRISm) was defined as FEV
/FVC ≥0.7 and FEV
<80% predicted. The primary endpoint was prevalence of spirometry-based airflow limitation and PRISm. The characteristics of study participants were reported as secondary endpoints.
Overall, 2518 individuals were included; 79% were <60 years of age (mean 52.0 years). Airflow limitation and PRISm were observed in 52 (2.1%) and 420 (16.7%) participants, respectively. FEV
in the PRISm group was between that in the no airflow limitation/PRISm and airflow limitation groups, FVC was similar in the PRISm and airflow limitation groups. The PRISm group had higher mean body mass index and a higher proportion of comorbid metabolic disease compared with the airflow limitation group. The prevalence of airflow limitation and PRISm was highest among current smokers (3.9% and 21.3%, respectively) versus former or never smokers.
A significant proportion of Japanese individuals <60 years of age attending their annual health examination had impaired lung function (airflow limitation and PRISm); prevalence was highest among current smokers. These findings support screening of current or former smokers ≥40 years of age using patient-reported questionnaires to inform the need for spirometry to confirm an OAD diagnosis.
The Collins effect connects transverse quark spin with a measurable azimuthal dependence in the yield of hadronic fragments around the quark's momentum vector. Using two different reconstruction ...methods, we find evidence of statistically significant azimuthal asymmetries for charged pion pairs in e(+)e(-) annihilation at a center-of-mass energy of 10.52 GeV, which can be attributed to a transverse polarization of the primordial quarks. The measurement was performed using a sample of 79 x 10(6) hadronic events collected with the Belle detector.
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CMK, CTK, FMFMET, IJS, NUK, PNG, UM
We report measurements of B→χ(c1)γK and χ(c2)γK decays using 772×10(6) BBover ¯ events collected at the Υ(4S) resonance with the Belle detector at the KEKB asymmetric-energy e(+)e(-) collider. ...Evidence of a new resonance in the χ(c1)γ final state is found with a statistical significance of 3.8σ. This state has a mass of 3823.1±1.8(stat)±0.7(syst) MeV/c(2), a value that is consistent with theoretical expectations for the previously unseen 1(3)D(2) ccover ¯ meson. We find no other narrow resonance and set upper limits on the branching fractions of the X(3872)→χ(c1)γ and χ(c2)γ decays.
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CMK, CTK, FMFMET, IJS, NUK, PNG, UM
Robot-assisted laparoscopic surgery has several advantages over conventional laparoscopy. However, population-based comparative studies for low anterior resection are limited. This article aimed to ...compare peri-operative results of robot-assisted low anterior resection (RALAR) and laparoscopy.
This retrospective cohort study used data from patients treated with RALAR or conventional laparoscopic low anterior resection (CLLAR) between October 2018 and December 2019, as recorded in the Japanese National Clinical Database, a data set registering clinical information, perioperative outcomes, and mortality. Of note, the registry does not include information on the tumour location (centimetres from the anal verge) and diverting stoma creation. Perioperative outcomes, including rate of conversion to open surgery, were compared between RALAR and CLLAR groups. Confounding factors were adjusted for using propensity score matching.
Of 21 415 patients treated during the study interval, 20 220 were reviewed. Two homogeneous groups of 2843 patients were created by propensity score matching. The conversion rate to open surgery was significantly lower in the RALAR group than in the CLLAR group (0.7 versus 2.0 per cent; P < 0.001). The RALAR group had a longer operating time (median: 352 versus 283 min; P < 0.001), less intraoperative blood loss (15 versus 20 ml; P < 0.001), a lower in-hospital mortality rate (0.1 versus 0.5 per cent; P = 0.007), and a shorter postoperative hospital stay (median: 13 versus 14 days; P < 0.001) compared with the CLLAR group. The CLLAR group had a lower rate of readmission within 30 days (2.4 versus 3.3 per cent; P = 0.045).
These data highlight the reduced conversion rate, in-hospital mortality rate, intraoperative blood loss, and length of postoperative hospital stay for rectal cancer surgery in patients treated using robot-assisted laparoscopic surgery compared with laparoscopic low anterior resection.
Background
Several studies have examined the clinical significance of metabolic response in primary tumours by 18Ffluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (18F‐FDG‐PET) in patients with ...oesophageal cancer who undergo neoadjuvant therapy. The relevance of the metabolic response in lymph nodes is unclear.
Methods
Consecutive patients with oesophageal cancer who underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by surgery were studied. 18F‐FDG‐PET was performed before and 2–3 weeks after completion of neoadjuvant chemotherapy, assessing FDG uptake in primary tumours and lymph nodes considered to be metastatic.
Results
Before therapy, 156 (73·9 per cent) of 211 patients had PET‐positive nodes, of whom 89 (57.1 per cent) had no evidence of metabolic activity in these lymph nodes following chemotherapy. There was a significant relationship between post‐treatment lymph node status assessed by FDG‐PET and numbers of pathologically confirmed metastatic lymph nodes. Patients with post‐treatment PET‐positive nodes had shorter survival than those without (5‐year survival rate 25 versus 62·6 per cent; P < 0·001). There was no difference in survival between patients with PET‐positive nodes before but not after therapy and patients who had PET‐negative nodes throughout (5‐year survival rate 59 versus 71 per cent respectively; P = 0·207). Multivariable analysis identified post‐treatment nodal status assessed by FDG‐PET and tumour depth as independent prognostic factors.
Conclusion
Identification of PET‐positive lymph nodes after completion of chemotherapy is a predictor of poor prognosis of patients with oesophageal cancer scheduled for surgery. FDG‐PET lymph node status after neoadjuvant chemotherapy is more important than that before chemotherapy.
Merits further evaluation in squamous cell cancer
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
We present a plastic scintillator, developed in collaboration with Carlit Holdings Co., Ltd., that is fabricated using a liquid parent material cured at room temperature by adding a hardener. The new ...scintillator can incorporate heat-labile functional materials such as gadolinium to enhance neutron sensitivity. The characteristics of the new scintillator, in particular the light yield and attenuation length, were evaluated using a 90Sr β-ray source. The light yield was measured 7% Anthracene on the basis of a comparison with commercially available scintillator (BC-408) at a distance of 18cm from the photodetector surface. This light yield is dependent on the distance between the luminous point and the photodetector because of light attenuation. The attenuation length of the Gd-doped scintillator was about 50cm.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
SUMMARY
Gastro‐tracheobronchial fistula (GTF) is a rare but life‐threatening complication specifically observed after esophagectomy and reconstruction using posterior mediastinal gastric tube. Ten ...cases of GTF were encountered in three hospitals in 2000–2009. Their clinicopathological, surgical, and postoperative care are summarized, together with a review of previously reported cases. GTF was classified as anastomotic leakage (n= 5), gastric necrosis (n= 4), and gastric ulcer type (n= 1). The anastomotic leakage type appeared about 2 weeks (postoperative day POD: 8–35) after esophagectomy, was located in the cervical or higher thoracic trachea. Breathing and pneumonia were controlled by tracheal tube placed in the distal of fistula. The gastric necrosis type was noted in patients who developed necrosis of the upper part of the gastric tube and abscess formation behind the tracheal wall, at POD 20–36 around the carina, the site of pronounced ischemia. Due to the large fistula around the carina, emergency surgery with muscle patch repair was frequently required for the control of aspiration pneumonia. Patients of the gastric ulcer type had peptic ulcer in the lesser curvature of the gastric tube, which perforated into the right bronchus long after surgery (POD 630). With respect to tracheobronchial factors, preoperative chemoradiation (three cases) and pre‐tracheal node dissection (three cases) tended to increase the risk of GTF. Closure of GTF by surgery (muscle patch repair) was successful in four cases and by nonsurgical treatment in three cases. In one case, stable oral intake was achieved by bypass operation without closure of GTF. Hospital death occurred in three cases. Understanding the pathogenesis and treatment options of GTF is important for surgeons who deal with esophageal cancer.
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BFBNIB, DOBA, FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Component materials in the steam environment of energy generation systems have severe problems of erosion caused by the impingement of water droplets. An evaluation of the resistance of such ...materials to erosion is very important in the maintenance of power plant systems and to prolong the life span of the components. A water-jet peening system, which is normally used for surface treatment technology, is based on the phenomenon of erosion damage. Parameters associated with water droplet impingement which dominate erosion rates are less controllable when a water-jet system is used. In this study, the use of a water-jet apparatus for erosion tests was conducted on an aluminum alloy to determine the effective parameters for erosion damage which are dependent on water pressure and the stand off distance between the nozzle and specimen. Parameters such as impact velocity, impact frequency and diameter of water droplets were examined by observations of craters formed on a thin aluminum film. Erosion damage was characterized with respect to incubation period and damage depth rate. Optimum surface treatment conditions were evaluated for an incubation period and damage depth rate after the incubation period. The incubation period and damage depth rate were greatly affected by the velocity and impact frequency of water droplets and the surface treatment technology should be sustained by the optimum impingement conditions which are controlled by the water pressure and stand off distance of the nozzle in the water-jet apparatus.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Purpose
Recent advances in laparoscopic surgical technology have made it possible to perform advanced high-level surgery, such as lymph node dissection for malignancy. Grasping the anatomy during ...such procedures is important for a safe operation. We have developed a new image information system that provides three-dimensional (3D) reconstructed CT images synchronized with the motion of the laparoscope. This study assesses this new navigation system.
Methods
Enhanced CT using a custom-made software program can provide 3D angiography images reconstructed as a laparoscopic view. A motion sensor mounted on the laparoscope can detect the direction angle of the laparoscope. The real-time rendered 3D CT images are synchronized with the laparoscopic video images according to the motion of the scope. These 3D CT images are projected on another monitor close to the laparoscopic video monitor. Lymph node dissection can be performed with the help of the real-time navigation system that provides a detailed 3D view of the vasculature.
Results
Ten laparoscopic gastrectomies were performed using this navigation system. Real-time intraoperative navigation of the vasculature was available, allowing for an excellent surgical outcome. No complications occurred in this series.
Conclusion
Our intraoperative navigation system allows for safe laparoscopic gastric lymph node dissection.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
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