TO THE EDITOR: We would like to appreciate the interest shown in our article by Dr. Joo. Our response to his queries is as follows: (1) The risk factors for prediction of recurrence after endoscopic pneumatic dilatation are young age, male sex, shorter duration of symptoms, low pre-treatment lower esophageal sphincter (LES) pressure and post therapy LES pressure above 10 mmHg. In the present st...

To assess the value of pneumatic dilatation of the cardia, 63 patients with achalasia have undergone a total of 107 Rider-Moeller dilatations over the last six years. There was a marked improvement in swallowing immediately after dilatation in all but two patients, there were no deaths attributable to the procedure and serious complications were rare (1.6% of patients). The first 50 cases have ...

In recent years, Japanese society has been aging, engendering a labor shortage of young workers. Robots are therefore expected to perform tasks such as rehabilitation, nursing elderly people, and day-to-day work support for elderly people. The pneumatic balloon actuator is a rubber artificial muscle developed for use in a robot hand in such environments. This actuator has a long stroke and a hi...

Balloon dilatation angioplasty was successfully performed in five patients (ages 18 months to 17 years) with discrete aortic coarctation. The catheter size was No. 8F or 9F. Selection of balloon diameter was based on angiographic measurements of the aorta determined proximal and distal to the coarctation site. A 10 sec inflation-deflation cycle at 6 to 8 atmospheres (90 to 120 psi) was performe...

Percutaneous balloon dilatation was attempted in 15 consecutive neonates (mean age 7.3 (range 1-27) days and weight 3.2 (range 2.5-4.1) kg) with critical stenosis of the pulmonary valve. Dilatation was successful in 11 (73%) patients. The mean balloon to annulus ratio was 1.1 (range 0.6-1.77). The ratio of right ventricle to femoral artery systolic pressure decreased from a mean (1 SD) of 1.4 (...

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS  Road Map (RM) fluoroscopy is a radiological technique that enables visualization of anatomic structures using image subtraction at peak opacification. RM fluoroscopy has never previously been evaluated for use in endoscopy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of RM in guiding endoscopic intervention in the esophagus. PATIENTS AND METHODS  This was a...

Introduction: Eustachian tube (ET) dysfunction is a common clinical entity but its treatment is still challenging to Otorhinolaryngologists. This study is done to know the effectiveness of transnasal endoscopic balloon dilatation of eustachian tube for treatment of chronic eustachian tube dysfunction.   Materials and Methods: It is a retrospective observational study conducted between May 2...