Rice farming care as a novel method of green care farm in East Asian context: an implementation research.

Background: Green care farms, which offer care for people with dementia in a farm setting, have been emerging in the Netherlands. The aim of this study was to 1) implement green care farms which use rice farming in Japan, 2) explore the positive experiences of rice farming care, and 3) compare the effect of rice farming care to that of usual care on well-being and cognitive ability.

Methods: We developed a new method of green care farm in Japan which uses rice farming, a farming that is practiced all over East Asia.

Comparison of land use regression models for NO based on routine and campaign monitoring data from an urban area of Japan.

Background: Typically, land use regression (LUR) models have been developed using campaign monitoring data rather than routine monitoring data. However, the latter have advantages such as low cost and long-term coverage. Based on the idea that LUR models representing regional differences in air pollution and regional road structures are optimal, the objective of this study was to evaluate the validity of LUR models for nitrogen dioxide (NO) based on routine and campaign monitoring data obtained from an urban area.

Association of maternal age with child health: A Japanese longitudinal study.

Average maternal age at birth has been rising steadily in Western and some Asian countries. Older maternal age has been associated with adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes; however, studies on the relationship between maternal age and young children's health remain scarce. Therefore, we sought to investigate the association of maternal age with child health outcomes in the Japanese population.

Drug Dependence Treatment Awareness among Japanese Female Stimulant Drug Offenders.

Few stimulant drug users receive adequate treatment. This cross-sectional study describes the characteristics of female drug offenders that use stimulants and clarifies the factors related to the awareness of treatment for drug dependencies. We included 80 females imprisoned due to stimulant control law violations from 2012 to 2015.

Association Between Remoteness to a Health Care Facility and Incidence of Ambulance Calls in Rural Areas of Japan.

Objectives: Whether traffic remoteness from health care service in rural areas influences usage of ambulance service has not been well investigated. This study aimed to evaluate the relation between remoteness to health care facilities and incidence of ambulance calls in rural areas of Japan.

Methods: We analyzed 155 rural communities of Hiroshima.

Cancer and non-cancer excess mortality resulting from mixed exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls and polychlorinated dibenzofurans from contaminated rice oil: "Yusho".

Purpose: In 1968, rice oil contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls and polychlorinated dibenzofurans caused a severe outbreak of food poisoning in Japan and was termed locally as "Yusho" (oil disease). In our previous study, we found that area-based standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) of some diseases were elevated shortly after the incident. This previous study, however, was unable to determine whether these elevated SMRs were a result of other area-specific factors.

Prevalence of dementia in Japan: a systematic review.

Background/aims: The actual prevalence of dementia in Japan as well as the changes in the prevalence are not well known. Therefore, we undertook a systematic review to collect evidence regarding the prevalence of dementia in Japan.

Methods: For this systematic review, we searched 2 electronic databases to identify cross-sectional or repeated cross-sectional studies with data regarding the study population, study location, diagnostic criteria, and prevalence of dementia.

Asian dust and daily all-cause or cause-specific mortality in western Japan.

Objective: Desert dust, which is included in course particles, is considered to have potential toxicity. The effect modification of desert dust on associations between anthropogenic air pollution and mortality has been evaluated. However, the independent effects of Asian dust are less clear.

The impact of travel time on geographic distribution of dialysis patients.

Backgrounds: The geographic disparity of prevalence rates among dialysis patients is unclear. We evaluate the association between travel time to dialysis facilities and prevalence rates of dialysis patients living in 1,867 census areas of Hiroshima, Japan. Furthermore, we study the effects of geographic features (mainland or island) on the prevalence rates and assess if these effects modify the association between travel time and prevalence.

Association between proximity to a health center and early childhood mortality in Madagascar.

Objective: To evaluate the association between proximity to a health center and early childhood mortality in Madagascar, and to assess the influence of household wealth, maternal educational attainment, and maternal health on the effects of distance.

Methods: From birth records of subjects in the Demographic and Health Survey, we identified 12565 singleton births from January 2004 to August 2009. After excluding 220 births that lacked global positioning system information for exposure assessment, odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for neonatal mortality and infant mortality were estimated using multilevel logistic regression models, with 12345 subjects (level 1), nested within 584 village locations (level 2), and in turn nested within 22 regions (level 3).

The differences in the involvements of loci of promoter region and Ile50Val in interleukin-4 receptor α chain gene between atopic dermatitis and Japanese cedar pollinosis.

Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) and Japanese cedar pollinosis (JCP) are common chronically allergic diseases associated with the activation of T-helper 2 cells. Recent studies have shown that polymorphisms in the genes for IL-4 receptor α chain (IL4RA) may contribute to susceptibility of AD and JCP, although the differences in the involvements of loci of IL4RA gene between AD and JCP are unclear. In this study, we investigated the role of polymorphisms in IL-4RA gene in conferring susceptibility to the development of AD and/or JCP using a family analysis and an association analysis in a Japanese population.

Nationwide cross-sectional population-based study on the prevalences of asthma and asthma symptoms among Japanese adults.

Background: Asthma is a common respiratory disease worldwide. However, few reports are available on the prevalences of asthma and asthma symptoms among Asian subjects.

Methods: To determine the prevalences of asthma and asthma symptoms among Japanese subjects, we performed a nationwide cross-sectional, population-based study on Japanese adults aged 20-79 years.

Power-frequency magnetic fields and childhood brain tumors: a case-control study in Japan.

Background: The strength of the association between brain tumors in children and residential power-frequency magnetic fields (MF) has varied in previous studies, which may be due in part to possible misclassification of MF exposure. This study aimed to examine this association in Japan by improving measurement techniques, and by extending measurement to a whole week.

Methods: This population-based case-control study encompassed 54% of Japanese children under 15 years of age.

How valid is the self-administered visual analogue scale for assessing the health status of elderly people?

The population of Japan is aging rapidly, and maintaining the quality of life of elderly people has become an important issue in contemporary Japan. This study was conducted to verify the validity of the self-administered visual analogue scale (VAS) for assessing the health status of elderly people. A survey was conducted in two villages in western Japan in 2003.

Perceived stress, severity of asthma, and quality of life in young adults with asthma.

Background: People suffering from asthmatic symptoms have a lower quality of life than those without. The aim of this study is to clarify the association of quality of life with the severity of asthma, perceived stress, and other factors such as the comorbidity of allergic diseases among young adults with asthma.

Methods: The study participants were 695 asthma patients, aged 20-44 years, from 29 medical centers in Japan.

Gene-environment association of an ITGB2 sequence variant with obesity in ethnic Japanese.

Mice lacking the integrin alphaMbeta2 (Mac-1, CD11b/CD18) develop an obese phenotype on western diet rich in fat. However, no association has been found between variations in the human genes encoding the integrin alphaMbeta2 and obesity. This study was aimed to investigate the association between a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) (rs235326) in the gene encoding human integrin beta2 subunit (ITGB2) with obesity.

Enhanced biological activity of polymeric osteopontin.

Osteopontin is a multifunctional glycoprotein with roles in immunomodulation, inflammatory response, tissue mineralization, and tissue remodeling, which are mediated primarily through integrins. Transglutaminase 2 selectively cross-links proteins by isopeptide bonding. Osteopontin is one of the substrates of this enzyme and undergoes polymerization; however, the biological meaning of this polymerization remains unknown.

The integrin alpha5beta1 regulates chondrocyte hypertrophic differentiation induced by GTP-bound transglutaminase 2.

Soluble GTP-bound transglutaminase 2 (TG2) induces hypertrophic differentiation in chondrocyte cultures in a beta1 integrin-dependent fashion. beta1 integrin subfamily consists of 12 heterodimers with 12 different alpha subunits and a beta1 subunit. To identify the specific integrin heterodimer(s) responsible for this process, we specifically blocked individual beta1 integrins on the CH-8 immortalized human chondrocytes during hypertrophic differentiation.

Psychological factors including sense of coherence and some lifestyles are related to general health questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) in elderly workers in Japan.

Objectives: The number of elderly workers has also been increasing and poor psychological well-being in elderly workers has been reported. The aim of this study is to elucidate the factors that are related to poor psychological well-being in elderly workers.

Methods: We administered General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) as an indicator of psychological well-being to 330 male elderly workers in the age range of 50-69, and analyzed different psychological factors, namely sense of coherence (SOC), and physical and lifestyle variables such as blood pressure, serum total cholesterol, smoking frequency, alcohol intake, exercise frequency, and body mass index (BMI) that are related to GHQ-12.

Association of perceived stress and stiff neck/shoulder with health status: multiple regression models by gender.

It is well known that psychological stress affects health status. Stiff neck and shoulder in a broad sense is one of the major somatic complaints among Japanese. The objective was to determine how much perceived stress and stiff neck/shoulder are associated with health-related quality of life (HRQoL) by gender.

[Association between occurrence of acute myocardial infarction and meteorological factors].

Objectives: The association between the occurrence of acute myocardial infarction and meteorological factors was examined in five cities of the Chugoku area in Japan.

Methods: This study used the emergency admission data for acute myocardial infarction in Yamaguchi, Matsue, Tottori, Okayama (from April 2000 to March 2005), and Hiroshima (from January 1993 to December 2002). Daily meteorological data was obtained from The Japan Meteorological Agency.

Genotypes and haplotypes of CCR2 and CCR3 genes in Japanese cedar pollinosis.

Whole genome scan analyses have revealed that the chromosomal region 3p21.3, which contains a gene cluster of the CC chemokine receptor, is possibly critical for the pathogenesis of allergic inflammation. Japanese cedar pollinosis is mediated by a type I allergy and induces seasonal rhinitis and conjunctivitis in humans as the most common form of hay fever in spring in Japan, although the candidate genes for cedar pollinosis remain to be elucidated.

Effects of atmospheric temperature and pressure on the occurrence of acute myocardial infarction in Hiroshima City, Japan.

In contrast to studies of the effects of atmospheric temperature and pressure on the occurrence of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), the interaction of these two factors has rarely been studied. We analyzed ambulance data (1993-2002) due to AMI in Hiroshima City using the poisson regression model to examine the main effects and the interaction of atmospheric temperature and pressure on AMI (n=3755). In the analysis, thermohydrological-index (THI), or humidity adjusted temperature, was calculated to involve the effect of relative humidity.

Association between high voltage overhead transmission lines and mental health: a cross-sectional study.

We examined the association between residential proximity to 60 Hz high voltage (22-500 kV) overhead transmission lines (HVOTLs) and mental health (MH). The subjects were 223 mothers with a mean age of 37 years. The distance from the subject's residence to the closest HVOTL was measured on a map.