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In Japan (in + japan)
Selected AbstractsValidity and reliability of the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE) in Japanese elderly peopleGERIATRICS & GERONTOLOGY INTERNATIONAL, Issue 3 2008Akiko Hagiwara Aim: In Japan, there are no valid and reliable physical activity questionnaires for elderly people. In this study, we translated the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE) into Japanese and assessed its validity and reliability. Methods: Three hundred and twenty-five healthy and elderly subjects over 65 years were enrolled. Concurrent validity was evaluated by Spearman's rank correlation coefficient between PASE scores and an accelerometer (waking steps and energy expenditure), a physical activity questionnaire for adults in general (the Japan Arteriosclerosis Longitudinal Study Physical Activity Questionnaire, JALSPAQ), grip strength, mid-thigh muscle area per bodyweight, static valance and bodyfat percentage. Reliability was evaluated by the test,retest method over a period of 3,4 weeks. Results: The mean PASE score in this study was 114.9. The PASE score was significantly correlated with walking steps (, = 0.17, P = 0.014), energy expenditure (, = 0.16, P = 0.024), activity measured with the JALSPAQ (, = 0.48, P < 0.001), mid-thigh muscle area per bodyweight (, = 0.15, P = 0.006) and static balance (, = 0.19, P = 0.001). The proportion of consistency in the response between the first and second surveys was adequately high. The intraclass correlation coefficient for the PASE score was 0.65. Conclusions: The Japanese version of PASE was shown to have acceptable validity and reliability. The PASE is useful to measure the physical activity of elderly people in Japan. [source] Cisplatin-conjugated Gelpart: initial study in vitroHEPATOLOGY RESEARCH, Issue 10 2008Shinichi Ohta Aim:, In Japan, Gelpart (Nippon Kayaku, Tokyo, Japan) is commercially available as an embolic agent made of gelatin for hepatocellular carcinoma. The object of this study was to develop cisplatin-conjugated Gelpart, confirm its bonding capability and confirm cisplatin-release from it in vitro. Methods:, Gelpart (80 mg) were immersed in 50 mL of the cisplatin solution (0.3 mg/mL) at 38°C for 1 hour to allow conjugation to cisplatin. Half of them were washed with double distilled water and centrifuged seven times to remove the uncombined cisplatin from Gelpart. Five mg of washed Gelpart and 5 mg unwashed Gelpart were freeze-dried and the platinum concentrations in these Gelpart were analyzed. In an in vitro release test, 30 mg of each cisplatin-conjugated Gelpart were placed in 10 mL of phosphate buffered salts (PBS) containing 0.01 wt.% Tween 80 and the system was shaken reciprocally at 72 strokes/min at 38°C. At different time intervals (1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 hours), 5 mL of the supernatant was pipetted out and immediately after that the same volume of PBS was added. The platinum concentration of the solutions sampled was measured and the release rate from cisplatin-conjugated Gelpart was calculated. Results:, The platinum concentrations (µg/g) of unwashed Gelpart and washed Gelpart were, respectively, 9563.5 ± 101.1 and 6396.5 ± 14.8. The release rates (%) from unwashed Gelpart and from washed Gelpart were, respectively, 43.1, 56.3, 56.5, 58.5, 60.9 and 5.8, 6.7, 8.5, 11.0, 12.0. Conclusion:, Gelpart had a bonding capability to cisplatin and an ability of sustained release from it. Cisplatin-conjugated Gelpart might become a simple embolic agent with drug delivery systems. [source] Development of psychophysics in Japan,JAPANESE PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH, Issue 4 2008TADASU OYAMA Abstract:, In Japan, psychophysics began as early as 1888 with the first lecture on it given by Yujiro Motora at the Imperial University (the University of Tokyo), following the completion of his PhD, at the laboratory of G. S. Hall. In 1910, A Photographic Album of Experimental Psychology was published, which included many photographs of psychophysical experiments. In 1933, Sadaji Takagi conducted the first experiment on animal psychophysics to investigate shape constancy in small birds. In 1949, the first experiment on infant psychophysics was conducted by Jyuji Misumi to study the early development of size constancy. And, in 1955, Tadasu Oyama proposed a new psychophysical technique, naming the method of transposition to measure perceived size ratios without using numerical expressions. This method has been successfully applied to the measurement of illusions, figural after-effects, and size constancy. In 1960, Tarow Indow and his collaborators published their first systematic application of multidimensional scaling to color perception. They also applied it to study the perceptual structure of visual space. Recent developments in those topics in Japan are also reviewed. [source] Coexistence of two mitochondrial DNA haplotypes in Japanese populations of Hypera postica (Col., Curculionidae)JOURNAL OF APPLIED ENTOMOLOGY, Issue 4 2005R. Kuwata Abstract:, In Japan, the alfalfa weevil, Hypera postica, was first recorded in 1982 from Fukuoka and Okinawa Prefectures and has been spreading to many other prefectures. The weevil seriously infests the Chinese milk vetch, Astragalus sinicus, one of the most important honey resources for honeybees in Japan. Direct sequencing of partial mitochondrial DNA and PCR-RFLP data for alfalfa weevil individuals indicated the coexistence of two haplotypes at various localities in Japan. Molecular phylogenetic analysis for H. postica haplotypes and strains indicated that the two Japanese haplotypes had not derived from a single genetic origin. Based on the results, special comments are made on biological control measures using introduced parasitic waSPS. [source] Illegal Route Estimation of the Seized Illicit Drug, Methamphetamine, by the Comparison of Striation Marks on Plastic Packaging FilmsJOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES, Issue 6 2009Ritsuko Sugita Ph.D. Abstract:, In Japan, the most common illicit drug is methamphetamine. It is possible to trace the origin of this drug by analyzing its organic and inorganic impurities and/or byproducts using several methods, such as GC, GC/MS, and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). As reported here, one other method includes comparison of the striation lines of polymer sheet layers from packaging using a polarized light method. Other alternative methods include analyzing the heat sealer pattern, layer thickness surface characteristics, and/or components of polymer sheet layers using infrared spectroscopy. Several of these alternative methods were used to analyze the origins of 29 packages confiscated from three regions over a 1000 km distance in Japan. Results indicated that packages seized from different regions had some polymer sheet layers which contained striation lines and heat sealer patterns that were similar. [source] Efficacy of ribavirin plus interferon-, in patients aged ,60 years with chronic hepatitis CJOURNAL OF GASTROENTEROLOGY AND HEPATOLOGY, Issue 7 2007Takashi Honda Abstract Background:, In Japan, patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV)-associated liver disease are getting older, and thus the number of deaths due to such disease is increasing. The efficacy of combination therapy with ribavirin and interferon for chronic HCV infection in elderly patients has not been fully clarified. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of combination therapy in such patients. Methods:, Two hundred and twenty consecutive patients with chronic hepatitis C were treated with combination therapy. These patients were divided into two groups according to age: patients , 60 years (n = 66) and patients < 60 years (n = 154). Clinical characteristics, the sustained virologic response (SVR) rate obtained by intention-to-treat analysis, and the rate of reduction or discontinuation of ribavirin were compared between the two groups. Results:, The ribavirin discontinuation rate was significantly higher in the patients aged ,60 years than in the patients aged <60 years. However, the SVR rates did not differ significantly between patients aged ,60 years and those aged <60 years (31.8% vs 38.3% by intention-to-treat analysis). According to multivariate analysis, genotype and HCV viral load were significantly associated with SVR while patient age did not affect SVR. Conclusions:, Treatment of chronic hepatitis C with combination therapy was comparably effective between patients aged ,60 years and those aged <60 years, although the ribavirin discontinuation rate was higher among the older patients than the younger patients. [source] Study of portal vein thrombosis in patients with idiopathic portal hypertension in JapanLIVER INTERNATIONAL, Issue 5 2005Shoichi Matsutani Abstract: Background/Aims: The aim of this study was to elucidate the incidence and clinical manifestations of portal vein thrombosis (PVT) in patients with idiopathic portal hypertension (IPH) in Japan during long-term follow-up. Patients and Methods: Twenty-two patients with IPH were examined for PVT by sonography during a follow-up of 12±6 years. Clinical manifestations and patient outcome related to PVT were studied. Seventy patients with liver cirrhosis were examined by sonography as an incidence control of thrombosis. Results: Nine IPH patients had portal thrombosis (9/22, 41%), a higher incidence than in liver cirrhosis patients (7/70, 10%). Those with thrombosis showed ascites, marked hypersplenism, and low serum albumin. Four patients with thrombosis died. Patients without thrombosis showed less clinical problems after long-term follow-up. Plasma antithrombin III and protein C activity decreased in almost half of the patients. However, there were no differences in these parameters between patients with and without thrombosis. Conclusions: In Japan, IPH patients had a high incidence of portal thrombosis, a significant factor for poor prognosis. Whether the management of PVT contributes to an improvement of a clinical course of IPH or not should be clarified in further study. [source] Results for 79 patients with neuroblastoma detected through mass screening at 6 months of age in a single institutePEDIATRICS INTERNATIONAL, Issue 6 2006NOBUHIRO NISHIO Abstract Background: In Japan, mass screening for neuroblastoma has been performed at 6 months of age to improve the prognosis of this condition for more than 20 years. In recent years, most neuroblastomas detected by mass screening were considered to have favorable biological features and sometimes tend to regress spontaneously. Methods: The authors established non-treated observation criteria in 1997 and criteria for observation of residual tumor after first-line chemotherapy in 1999, and have made an effort to reduce the intensity of medical treatment for neuroblastoma. The authors examined outcomes of 79 patients who were found in the Shizuoka neuroblastoma mass screening at 6 months of age and who received medical treatment or underwent observation in Shizuoka Children's Hospital, Shizuoka, Japan, between December 1981 and December 2004. Results: A total of 77 patients survived but the remaining two patients died from complications of medical treatment. None of the patients died due to progression of neuroblastoma. In the cases, non-treated observation was performed in 17. Of those, 12 patients are now under non-treated observation. Of their tumors, two have disappeared, nine have become smaller and another one has not change in size. Observation of residual tumor after first-line chemotherapy was performed in 15 cases, and three disappeared and the other 12 cases became smaller. Medical treatment-related complications were observed in 20 of 67 patients who received medical treatment, and 18 of the 20 patients were seen before establishing non-treated observation criteria. Conclusion: Non-treated observation and observation of residual tumor after first-line chemotherapy were useful to reduce medical treatment-related complications. [source] ORIGINAL ARTICLE: Live Birth Rate According to Maternal Age and Previous Number of Recurrent MiscarriagesAMERICAN JOURNAL OF REPRODUCTIVE IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 5 2009Mayumi Sugiura-Ogasawara Problem, In Japan, marital age and women's age at the first pregnancy are continuing to increase year by year. However, information concerning subsequent live birth rate according to maternal age and number of previous recurrent miscarriages is limited. Method of study, We studied a total of 1250 unexplained patients suffering two or more consecutive miscarriages. We examined the live birth rate at the first pregnancy and the cumulative success rate for birth of at least one child after examination. Results, The live birth rate of women in their 40s was 58.1%, which was similar to that of women who were 35,39 years old (58.4%) at the first pregnancy, as found after examination. From logistic regression, women's age and the number of previous miscarriages independently decreased the live birth rate in subsequent pregnancies (ps) as well as cumulative pregnancies (pc), as follows: Conclusion, The information concerning the live birth rate can be given to each patient before subsequent pregnancy. [source] High-tech rural clinics and hospitals in Japan: a comparison to the Japanese averageAUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF RURAL HEALTH, Issue 5 2004Masatoshi Matsumoto Abstract Context:,Japanese medical facilities are noted for being heavily equipped with high-tech equipment compared to other industrialised countries. Rural facilities are anecdotally said to be better equipped than facilities in other areas due to egalitarian health resource diffusion policies by public sectors whose goal is to secure fair access to modern medical technologies among the entire population. Objectives:,To show the technology status of rural practice and compare it to the national level. Design:,Nationwide postal survey. Setting, Subjects & Interventions:,Questionnaires were sent to the directors of 1362 public hospitals and clinics (of the 1723 municipalities defined as ,rural' by four national laws). Information was collected about the technologies they possessed. The data were compared with figures from a national census of all hospitals and clinics. Results:,A total of 766 facilities responded (an effective response rate of 56%). Rural facilities showed higher possession rates in most comparable technologies than the national level. It is noted that almost all rural hospitals had gastroscopes and colonoscopes and their possession rates of bronchoscopes and dialysis equipment were twice as high as the national level. The discrepancy in possession rates between rural and national was even more remarkable in clinics than in hospitals. Rural clinics owned twice as many abdominal ultrasonographs, and three times as many gastroscopes, colonoscopes, defibrillators and computed tomography scanners as the national level. Conclusions:,Rural facilities are equipped with more technology than urban ones. Government-led, tax based, technology diffusion in the entire country seems to have attained its goal. What is already known on this subject:,As a general tendency in both developing and developed countries, rural medical facilities are technologically less equipped than their urban counterparts. What does this paper add?:,In Japan, rural medical facilities are technologically better equipped than urban facilities. [source] Comment on "Inequality in Japan"ASIAN ECONOMIC POLICY REVIEW, Issue 1 2008Siow Yue CHIA [source] | ||||||||||