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R Okita

Publications and source records attributed to R Okita.

14 recordsLinked to original sources

Transcortical mixed aphasia due to cerebral infarction in left inferior frontal lobe and temporo-parietal lobe.

We present a case of transcortical mixed aphasia caused by a cerebral embolism. A 77-year-old right-handed man was admitted to our hospital with speech disturbance and a right hemianopia. His spontaneous speech was remarkably reduced, and object naming, word fluency, comprehension, reading and writing were all severely disturbed. However, repetition of phonemes and sentences and reading aloud were fully preserved. Although magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed cerebral infarcts in the left frontal and parieto-occipital lobe which included the inferior frontal gyrus and angular gyrus, single photon emission CT revealed a wider area of low perfusion over the entire left hemisphere except for part of the left perisylvian language areas. The amytal (Wada) test, which was performed via the left internal carotid artery, revealed that the left hemisphere was dominant for language. Hence, it appears that transcortical mixed aphasia may be caused by the isolation of perisylvian speech areas, even if there is a lesion in the inferior frontal gyrus, due to disconnection from surrounding areas.

Aged↗

Silent cerebral infarction and cognitive function in middle-aged neurologically healthy subjects.

We sought to clarify whether apparently silent cerebral infarcts and periventricular hyperintensities are associated with depressed cognitive function in middle-aged subjects. Subjects were 84 middle-aged neurologically normal adults who wished to undergo a screening examination of the brain. We performed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain and neuropsychologic tests in all subjects. Silent cerebral infarcts and periventricular hyperintensities, respectively, were detected in 21 and 14 of 84 subjects. Mini-mental state (MMS) and Raven's colored progressive matrices (RCPM) scores were significantly lower in subjects with than without silent cerebral infarcts. By two-factor analysis of variance, MMS score was affected by silent cerebral infarcts or periventricular hyperintensities, with interactions between the two lesion types (P < 0.05). Silent cerebral infarcts may be an independent factor in the pathogenesis of intellectual dysfunction, but truly independent analysis is difficult because many subjects with silent cerebral infarcts also have periventricular hyperintensities.

Adult↗

Memory impairment and spatial disorientation following a left retrosplenial lesion.

We treated a patient in whom a left retrosplenial lesion resulted in memory impairment and spatial disorientation. A 31 year old, right handed man was admitted to our hospital after the sudden onset of headache. He was alert, attentive and cooperative, and showed no motor or sensory deficits. Although intelligence was preserved, memory was obviously deficient. The patient proceeded in wrong directions after he left his hospital room and subsequently his home. Neuroimaging revealed a subcortical hematoma in the left cingulate isthmus, while single-photon emission computed tomography demonstrated decreased perfusion in the splenium and left parietal lobe.

Adult↗

Transient crossed aphasia and persistent amnesia after right thalamic haemorrhage.

A 45-year-old right-handed woman suffered transient aphasia and persistent amnesia after a right thalamic haemorrhage. This patient appeared to have crossed aphasia, although it disappeared within 8 weeks. It is noteworthy that the patient had a unilateral right thalamic lesion but exhibited both verbal and non-verbal memory impairment. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed cerebral haemorrhage in the right thalamus involving the ventral anterior nucleus, medioventral nucleus, mamillothalamic tract, internal medullary lamina, and mediodorsal nucleus. An amytal test was performed and suggested that the right hemisphere was dominant for language functions and the left hemisphere was dominant for visuospatial functions. Single photon emission CT revealed a low perfusion area only in the right thalamus. These findings suggest that the right hemisphere might be dominant for both verbal and non-verbal memory function in this patient, although visuospatial function was lateralized in the left hemisphere.

Amnesia↗

Transcortical sensory aphasia due to a left frontal subcortical haemorrhage.

A case of transcortical sensory aphasia caused by a cerebral haemorrhage in the left frontal lobe is presented. A 72-year-old right-handed woman was admitted to the hospital, with a history of acute onset of speech disturbance and headache. On initial assessment, her spontaneous speech was fluent. She had no difficulty initiating speech, articulated normally, and did not exhibit logorrhea. Her ability to repeat phonemes and short sentences (5-6 words) was fully preserved, however she had severe difficulty with visual recognition of words, and with aural comprehension at the word level, although she was able to read words aloud. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging showed cerebral haemorrhage in the left frontal lobe, involving the superior and middle frontal gyrus. Single photon emission CT revealed a wider area of low perfusion over the entire left frontal lobe, including the superior, middle and inferior frontal gyrus. The aphasia symptoms, mainly poor comprehension, disappeared quickly several weeks after the event. This may have been due to a reduction in the size of the haematoma and a resolution of the oedema around the haematoma. Clinically, the transcortical sensory aphasia in this case was indistinguishable from that caused by damage to the posterior language areas. Further case reports of transcortical sensory aphasia associated with frontal lobe lesions would help to confirm whether a relatively rapid recovery is characteristic in cases such as this.

Aged↗

[Construct validity of a new computer-assisted cognitive assessment battery in normal adults].

A computer-assisted battery for neuropsychological tests (CNT) has been designed to screen adults for cognitive impairment. The aim of this study was to gather evidence for the construct validity of CNT and also investigate the relationship between CNT and conventional neuropsychological tests. Subjects were 45 healthy adults (21 men and 24 women), who ranged in age from 20 to 70 years (mean = 33.5, SD = 1.9) with no history of substance abuse, or of psychotic or neurological disorders. The CNT in our study consists of six subtests designed to assess various components of driving, such as digit span, visual scanning, visual and verbal memory, complex reaction time, and vigilance. Mini-mental state test, Kana-hiroi test, word fluency, the auditory-verbal learning test and Raven's colored progressive matrices were also performed as conventional neuropsychological tests. Results showed there were high correlations between each CNT subtests and conventional neuropsychological tests. A factor analysis (with varimax rotation) identified 4 factors with eigen values greater than 1, which accounted for over 70% of the variance. CNT was able to estimate each factor related to cognitive function such as learning and memory, attention, judgment, and visual scanning selectively. CNT may thus be a useful tool for detection of cognitive impairment, although this test has important limitations. Broader applications of these tests will require extensive population-based validation.

Adult↗

[Dural arteriovenous fistula at the cranio-cervical junction presenting transient ischemic attack: a case report].

A 58-year-old male was admitted to our hospital because of repeated transient ischemic attack of right hemiparesis and speech disturbance. A CT scan did not demonstrate any remarkable findings. No significant cerebral arterial stenosis or occlusion was found on angiography. However, dural arteriovenous fistula fed by the radiculo-meningeal artery was found at the cranio-cervical junction on left vertebral angiography. The shunt flow from the arteriovenous fistula drained into the superior petrosal sinus and sigmoid sinus in a retrograde fashion. On the angiographic findings when his transient ischemic attack (TIA) had disappeared, the venous drainage had returned to its normal fashion. Venous hypertension around the brain stem was supposed to have caused the transient ischemic attack in this case. We performed coagulation of the draining vein and fistula surgically. After surgery, the patient's TIA completely disappeared. We report the first case of dural arteriovenous fistula at the cranio-cervical junction presenting transient ischemic attack.

Aged↗

Demonstration of cytochrome reductases in rat liver peroxisomes: biochemical and immunochemical analyses.

In this study we utilized the analytical cell fractionation approach in combination with immunoblotting techniques and immunoelectron microscopy to test for the presence of NADPH cytochrome P-450 reductase and NADH cytochrome c (b5) reductase in rat liver peroxisomes. Highly purified peroxisomes from clofibrate-treated rats exhibited both NADPH cytochrome P-450 reductase activity and NADH cytochrome c reductase activity (using cytochrome c as an electron acceptor). These activities were inhibited by the respective reductase antibodies made against the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) enzymes. Immunoblot data in combination with immunoelectron microscopy indicated that the peroxisomal NADPH cytochrome P-450 reductase is localized in the matrix of the organelle and has a subunit of molecular weight similar to that of the ER enzyme, whereas the NADH cytochrome c (b5) reductase is localized in the membranes of the peroxisomes. Again, the subunit molecular weight was similar to that of the ER enzyme. The presence of these reductases in peroxisomes further supports the role of this organelle in bile acid synthesis and cholesterol metabolism.

Animals↗

Effect of acetylsalicylic acid on fatty acid omega-hydroxylation in rat liver.

The effect of acetylsalicylic acid on the cytochrome P-450-mediated fatty acid omega-hydroxylation system was assessed in male Sprague-Dawley rats after they were fed a diet containing 1% (w/w) acetylsalicylic acid. A 3-fold increase in the specific activity of laurate omega-hydroxylation was observed in the acetylsalicylic acid fed rats in comparison to control rats. This effect of acetylsalicylic acid was unique as the specific activities of other cytochrome P-450-mediated reactions were not increased. The induction of the laurate omega-hydroxylation system was also manifested in a rapid formation of its dicarboxylic acid derivative, dodecanedioic acid, as the omega-hydroxy derivative was further oxidized by alcohol and aldehyde dehydrogenases. These results suggest the acetylsalicylic acid is similar to other peroxisomal proliferating agents in that it also induces the microsomal fatty acid omega-hydroxylation system and may account for the appearance of unique dicarboxylic acids in Reye's syndrome patients.

Animals↗

Induction of laurate omega-hydroxylase by di (2-ethylhexyl)phthalate in rat liver microsomes.

Liver microsomes, prepared from rats fed a diet containing di (2-ethylhexyl)phthalate, were observed to hydroxylate lauric acid at carbon 12 at a specific activity 6 times greater than control rats. There was no increase in the specific activity of the laurate 11-hydroxylase. The specific activity of hepatic microsomal NADPH-cytochrome c reductase was increased 2-fold by phthalate feeding, but no effect was observed in the specific contents of cytochromes b5 or P-450. These results indicate that di (2-ethylhexyl)phthalate is similar to the hypolipidemic agent and peroxisomal proliferator , clofibrate, which was previously reported to be a novel inducer of the cytochrome P-450 mediated omega-hydroxylation of fatty acids.

Animals↗