Atsushi Sone

Prognostic factors for survival and bladder recurrence in transitional cell carcinoma of the upper urinary tract.

Abstract Background: Prognostic factors for survival in transitional cell carcinoma of the upper urinary tract have been extensively evaluated, but detailed analyses of patterns of bladder recurrence after surgery have been rare.

Incidentally discovered pheochromocytoma in long-term hemodialysis patients.

Two cases of pheochromocytoma incidentally discovered in long‐term hemodialysis patients are reported. Case 1 was a 47‐year‐old‐man who had been receiving hemodialysis for 18 years. Case 2 was a 33‐year‐old woman who had been receiving hemodialysis for 12 years. Both cases were normotensive, and no specific symptoms suggesting pheochromocytoma were seen. Plasma norepinephrine (NE) levels were not elevated in both cases; however, the level of epinephrine (E) was double the normal range in Case 2. After surgery, plasma E level returned to the normal range in Case 2; however, the level of NE remained almost the same as the preoperative value in both cases. Plasma catecolamine levels in long‐term hemodialysis patients with pheochromocytoma are reviewed in the present report, and the efficacy of imaging methods in the diagnosis of pheochromocytoma are discussed.

Efficacy of preoperative donation of autologous blood in patients undergoing radical retropubic prostatectomy

Background: Radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP) has resulted in substantial blood loss and the frequent need for homologous blood transfusion. In this study, the efficacy of autologous blood transfusion, from medical and financial perspectives, was evaluated in patients undergoing RRP.

Assessment of microheterogeneity of blood flow in the rat urinary bladder by high‐resolution digital radiography

To assess high‐resolution digital radiography for measuring blood flow and thus examine the microheterogeneity of bladder microcirculation in a rat model.