Internal medicine
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To evaluate the association between vitamin D receptor (VDR) BsmI gene polymorphism and the risk of end-stage renal disease (ESRD). ⋯ VDR BsmI gene polymorphism appears to not be associated with the risk of ESRD in the overall population, Caucasians or Asians. However, more studies should be performed in the future.
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Both increased serum levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC) and metabolic syndrome (MetS) are associated with obesity and have been established to be risk factors of cardiovascular disease. However, studies on the relationship between LDLC and MetS have been limited. ⋯ The LDLC level is associated with coexisting MetS and functions as a predictor of the development of MetS, independent of BMI or the pre-existing components of MetS, in a Japanese health screening population.
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A 21-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with a fever, erythema, cervical lymphadenopathy and pancytopenia. A diagnosis of Sweet's syndrome (SS) with Kikuchi's disease (KD) and hemophagocytic syndrome (HPS) was made based on the results of a bone marrow aspiration along with the results from biopsy specimens of the brachial skin and a cervical lymph node. ⋯ He successfully entered remission through treatment with prednisolone. This findings of this case indicate that when SS with KD presents as HPS, it may suggest an association with an RIG-I-related innate immunity.
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Multicenter Study
Anxiety and depression in patients with Parkinson's disease.
To investigate the prevalence and clinical correlates of anxiety and depression in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and to examine the relationship between anxiety and depression and the quality of life (QOL). ⋯ These findings indicate that recognizing anxiety and depression in patients with PD is important, since both conditions are commonly observed in patients with PD and are similarly associated with the QOL, independent of motor severity.
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The present study was undertaken to establish a useful range for the B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) level, with the ultimate goal of determining a cut-off BNP level that will make it possible to identify patients with clinically important organic heart disorders among patients encountered in clinical practice. ⋯ These findings suggest that the lower range of the BNP level allowing for identification of patients with clinically important organic heart disorders increases with age; however, it might be appropriate to adopt a level of approximately 40 pg/mL, even in elderly patients, in order to avoid any possible age-related effects of diastolic dysfunction or other factors.