Mitsuyo Hashimoto

Ectopic Sebaceous Glands in the Esophagus: Report of Two Cases

Abstract: Reports of ectopic sebaceous glands in the esophagus are rare. Six postmortem cases and eight antemortem cases have been reported. In 1990, we studied two patients with ectopic sebaceous glands in the esophagus that were found during endoscopy and confirmed histologically. These lesions macro‐scopically resembled gastric xanthomas.

Obesity and Gastrointestinal Diseases

The prevalence of obesity in the Japanese population has been increasing dramatically in step with the Westernization of lifestyles and food ways. Our study demonstrated significant associations between obesity and a number of gastrointestinal disorders in a large sample population in Japan. We demonstrated that reflux esophagitis and hiatal hernia were strongly related to obesity (BMI > 25) in the Japanese. In particular, obesity with young male was a high risk for these diseases. On the other hand, it has been reported that obesity is also associated with Barretts esophagus and colorectal adenoma; however, obesity was not a risk factor for these diseases in our study. The difference of ethnicity of our subjects may partly explain why we found no data to implicate obesity as a risk factor for Barretts esophagus. Arterial sclerosis associated with advanced age and hyperglycemia was accompanied by an increased risk of colorectal adenoma.

Relationship between Alcohol Intake and Risk Factors for Metabolic Syndrome in Men

OBJECTIVE The precise relationship between alcohol intake and metabolic syndrome (MetS) is still unclear, and the results from previous studies have been inconclusive. Thus, we examined the effect of alcohol intake on the risk of MetS in men in order to gain more information on a potential relationship. METHODS This study included 22,349 men who were divided into four groups according to their average alcohol intake [non-, light (less than 20 g ethanol/day), heavy (equal or more than 20 g and less than 60 g ethanol/day) and very heavy (equal and greater than 60 g ethanol/day) drinkers]. We measured each subjects body mass index (BMI), waist circumference and blood pressure (BP) and conducted a blood test to obtain a complete blood count and biochemical panel. These results were used to obtain the MetS prevalence. Additionally, fatty liver was diagnosed using abdominal ultrasonography. RESULTS Light drinkers had smaller waist circumferences. Heavy and very heavy drinkers had larger waist circumferences, a higher BMI, a higher BP, higher fasting plasma glucose levels, higher triglycerides (TG) levels and higher high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels while they had lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels than nondrinkers. The prevalence of high BP, hyperglycemia and high TG was significantly higher in heavy and very heavy drinkers than in nondrinkers. The prevalence of low HDL cholesterol levels decreased with an increase in alcohol consumption. The prevalence of MetS was significantly lower in light drinkers and higher in very heavy drinkers compared with nondrinkers. CONCLUSION Alcohol intake significantly influences the risk of MetS in men. A significant association was seen between an alcohol intake of 60 g/day or higher and the prevalence of MetS.

SAFETY MEASURES FOR GASTROINTESTINAL ENDOSCOPY IN PATIENTS RECEIVING ANTITHROMBOTIC THERAPY

Aim:  Owing to carelessness of endoscopists, invasive procedures, such as biopsy, are sometimes carried out inadvertently in patients receiving antithrombotic therapy. The aim of the present study was to retrospectively evaluate the actual status of such careless mistakes and the efficacy of new safety measures.

Effects of lansoprazole on mucosal regeneration in patients with gastric ulcers: evaluation using an electronic endoscope with a magnifying function.

When healing of gastric ulcers is observed using an electronic endoscope with a magnifying function, five types of regenerated mucosa can be distinguished. The membranous type appears first at the ulcer margin and is followed by the spindle-shaped and palisade-shaped regenerated mucosae that play an important role in ulcer healing. These two types change into the cobblestone-shaped and the basically normal structure, which have an important relation to the maturity of ulcer healing. In observation of gastric ulcer healing in 10 patients who received lansoprazole 30 mg (L group) or in 12 patients who received famotidine 20 mg b.i.d. (F group), the spindle- and palisade-shaped mucosae were significantly more developed in the L group than in the F group after 4 weeks (p < 0.05). On the other hand, after 8 weeks, the development of these two types of mucosa was less extensive in the L group than in the F group, because these two types had changed into cobblestone-shaped and basically normal structure in the L group. In conclusion, treatment with lansoprazole resulted in more rapid ulcer healing and maturation of regenerated mucosa than did treatment with famotidine in this study.

Mucosal Regeneration of Gastric Ulcer Confirmed by Electronic Endoscopy

We studied the detailed surface structure and changes in the regenerated mucosa during the course of healing of recurrent gastric ulcers treated with lansoprazole or famotidine, using a magnifying electronic endoscope (videoendoscope) and a dye contrast method. The detailed patterns of regenerated mucosa were classified into five types: membranous, spindle-shaped, palisade-shaped, cobblestone-shaped, and almost normal structure. Initially, the membranous regenerated mucosa appears at the ulcer margin and grows into the spindle- and palisade-shaped regenerated mucosa. These latter types of mucosa change gradually into the cobblestone-shaped type, which finally develops into an almost normal structure. Lansoprazole appeared to bring about more rapid growth and changes of the regenerated mucosa than famotidine, although the difference was not statistically significant. We suggest that it is useful, in the assessment of gastric ulcer therapy, to observe the detailed patterns of the regenerated mucosa during the healing process using a magnifying electronic endoscope

A Case of Spontaneous Regression of Primary Malignant Lymphoma of the Stomach

A 62‐year‐old female who complained of discomfort in her upper abdominal region and a poor appetite had an endoscopically documented polypoid lesion with a shallow irregular central depression at the lesser curvature of the angulus. A diagnosis of malignant lymphoma was made following a gastric biopsy. A gastric endoscopy performed about 20 days later revealed a marked increase in size with an ulcerated surface the margin of which had an auricle‐like shape. These findings were compatible with a diagnosis of malignant lymphoma of the stomach. No medical therapy, such as antineoplastic agents, was given during the follow‐up period. A gastric resection was performed 1.5 months after the initial endoscopy. A detailed histopathological examination of the resected gastric specimen revealed a U1‐II type ulcer scar but no malignant lymphoma cells. Very few cases of a complete spontaneous regression of a malignant lymphoma of the stomach have been reported either within or outside of Japan though it is well known that lymphomas show rapid morphological changes in some patients who are followed‐up without any specific therapy. These rare case reports in the literature are reviewed and discussed together with our present case.