In this pilot study, we roughly classified the pain descriptor items into two types for evaluating the qualities of deafferentation pain. We found that visually induced motor imagery by MVF was more effective for reducing deep pain than superficial pain. This suggests that the analgesic effect of MVF treatment does depend on the qualities of the pain. Further research will be required to confirm that this effect is a specific consequence of MVF.

Muscle nerve sympathetic activity (MSA) was recorded from the peroneal nerve during wakefulness and in different sleep states in healthy young adults. The burst rate (BR) of MSA significantly decreased in NREM, but not in REM sleep, compared with that during wakefulness. Transient increases of MSA frequently appeared in association with rapid eye movements during REM sleep. K-complexes in Stage 2 were almost always accompanied by a burst of MSA, and were followed by a transient elevation of arterial blood pressure. Auditory stimuli applied in sleep induced a burst of MSA followed by a transient increase of arterial blood pressure, only when they elicited an arousal response in the EEG, such as a K-complex, transient EEG desynchronization, or a short train of alpha waves. The same stimuli applied during wakefulness did not induce such changes in MSA and in arterial blood pressure.

Myocardial bridges are more frequently found in the middle third of the anterior interventricular branch of the left coronary artery. The diameter of the anterior interventricular branch of the left coronary artery under the myocardial bridge may be smaller than after the bridge. Myocardial bridges may not provide protection against the formation of atherosclerotic plaque inside the anterior interventricular branch of the left coronary artery.

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Nocturnal sleep was examined in 12 patients with degenerative diseases involving the brain stem and in 2 patients with late cerebellar cortical atrophy (LCCA). A peculiar sleep state, characterized by the concomitant appearance of a low‐voltage mixed frequency EEG, rapid eye movements (REMs) and tonic EMG in mental muscles, repeatedly appeared during nocturnal sleep in all of the 12 patients with degenerative diseases involving the brain stem and it was called stage 1‐REM after Tachibana et al.32 In 8 of the 12 patients, delirious or oneiric behavior appeared during, or soon after, the episodes of stage 1‐REM. Inner experiences reported by one of the subjects well corresponded to his behavior during the episode of stage 1‐REM. Stage 1‐REM was not observed during nocturnal sleep of the patients with LCCA. These results indicate that a degenerative lesion in the brain stem induced stage 1‐REM and delirious behavior during nocturnal sleep through abolishing muscle atonia of REM sleep and causing dissociation of the functional components characterizing REM sleep.