Treatment strategies for insomnia in Japanese primary care physicians' practice: A Web-based questionnaire survey.

Background: It is unclear how primary care physicians manage insomnia after the introduction of novel hypnotics such as orexin receptor antagonists and melatonin receptor agonists. This Web-based questionnaire survey aimed to examine treatment strategies for insomnia in Japanese primary care practice.

Methods: One-hundred-and-seventeen primary care physicians were surveyed on the familiarity of each management option for insomnia on a binary response scale (0 = "unfamiliar"; 1 = "familiar") and how they managed insomnia using a nine-point Likert scale (1 = "I never prescribe/perform it"; 9 = "I often prescribe/perform it").

Examining the usefulness of the brain network marker program using fMRI for the diagnosis and stratification of major depressive disorder: a non-randomized study protocol.

Background: Although many studies have reported the biological basis of major depressive disorder (MDD), none have been put into practical use. Recently, we developed a generalizable brain network marker for MDD diagnoses (diagnostic marker) across multiple imaging sites using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). We have planned this clinical trial to establish evidence for the practical applicability of this diagnostic marker as a medical device.

Development and validation of the Japanese version of the Hyperarousal Scale.

Background: The objectives of this study were to develop a Japanese version of the Hyperarousal Scale (HAS-J) and investigate its factor structure, reliability, and validity, as well as to calculate a cutoff score for the HAS-J and assess different levels of hyperarousal in insomnia patients and community dwellers.

Methods: We recruited 224 outpatients receiving insomnia treatment (56.3% women; mean age 51.

Development and acceptability of a decision aid for chronic insomnia considering discontinuation of benzodiazepine hypnotics.

Aim: To describe the development and acceptability of a decision aid (DA) for chronic insomnia considering discontinuation of benzodiazepine (BZD) and benzodiazepine receptor agonist (BZRA) hypnotics, and if discontinuing, tapering with or without cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I).

Methods: We reviewed relevant literature describing chronic insomnia to identify options. We used the results of the systematic review and meta-analysis conducted previously to determine the related outcomes of two options: discontinuation of BZD/BZRA hypnotics by gradual tapering alone and discontinuation of BZD/BZRA hypnotics by gradual tapering with CBT-I.

Understanding the process for developing sleep disorders among Japanese workers: a qualitative study.

Sleep disorders have an enormous impact on occupational health and are counterproductive from an economic perspective. However, the processes of causing sleep disorders from psychosocial aspects have not yet been known. The purpose of this study was to describe how sleep disorders develop among workers with respect to different psychosocial conditions.

Developing New Information Sheets for Evacuees and Evacuation Centers to be Used During All Natural Disaster Phases.

Introduction: Evacuees' quality of life can be improved by investigating both their health problems and the conditions of evacuation centers during natural disasters.

Study Objective: This study aims to develop new evacuee and evacuation center information sheets that focus on infection control, oral health and dentures, mental health, and rehabilitation during natural disasters.

Methods: The analysis was conducted with the Delphi method by questioning doctors from various fields (infectious disease, psychiatry, rehabilitation, and dentistry) about the information that may be needed for evacuees and in the evacuation center environment.

The right hemisphere is important for driving-related cognitive function after stroke.

Considering quality of life (QOL) after stroke, car driving is one of the most important abilities for returning to the community. In this study, directed attention and sustained attention, which are thought to be crucial for driving, were examined. Identification of specific brain structure abnormalities associated with post-stroke cognitive dysfunction related to driving ability would help in determining fitness for car driving after stroke.

Psychosocial intervention for discontinuing benzodiazepine hypnotics in patients with chronic insomnia: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Long-term benzodiazepine (BZD) use is not recommended in the treatment of chronic insomnia, and psychosocial interventions, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), are a potential treatment option for discontinuing BZDs. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to clarify whether psychosocial interventions are effective for discontinuing BZD hypnotics in patients with chronic insomnia. A literature search of major electronic databases was conducted up to July 2018.

Association between obesity and self-reported sleep duration variability, sleep timing, and age in the Japanese population.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the association between obesity and sleep habits, including bedtime, wake-up time, and sleep duration variability over a week.

Methods: We analyzed 9289 participants in this study. Following a health examination, each participant self-reported their sleep habits using a standardized 19-item questionnaire.

Lower blood pressure and smaller pulse pressure in sleeping pill users: A large-scale cross-sectional analysis.

This study aimed to investigate the association between sleeping pill use and hypertension or blood pressure (BP) via a cross-sectional analysis.A total of 11,225 subjects (5875 men and 5350 women) underwent health examinations. We compared the proportion of sleeping pill users among hypertension (n = 5099) and normotensive (n = 6126) participants.

Predictors of negative symptoms in the chronic phase of schizophrenia: A cross-sectional study.

This study was designed to investigate the relationship between negative symptoms and key indicators for long-term hospital stays among inpatients with schizophrenia. A further aim was to elucidate the clinical determinants of negative symptoms. The following were used as index factors: age, duration of illness, duration of hospitalization, age at onset, years of education, smoking status, body mass index, concentrations of serum triglycerides, total cholesterol, uric acid, QTc interval duration from electrocardiography, dose equivalents of antipsychotic and anticholinergic agents, neurocognitive function, drug-induced extrapyramidal symptoms, involuntary movements, and psychiatric symptoms.

Regional brain functions in the resting state indicative of potential differences between depression and chronic pain.

Complex relationships between depression and chronic pain have been reported in previous studies. However, only a few neuroimaging studies have investigated similarities and differences in neural systems underlying them. We examined the brain functions in the resting state of 43 patients with depression, 41 patients with chronic pain (somatoform pain disorder) and 41 healthy controls, by using regional homogeneity (ReHo) and functional connectivity analysis.

Association of sleep habits with blood pressure in elderly people.

We investigated the impact of sleep habits on blood pressure (BP) in cross-sectional analyses of 1533 participants aged ≥ 70 without cardiovascular disease or treatment for hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and dyslipidemia. We assessed sleep habits [time in bed (TIB), bed time, and taking sleeping pills], using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. For groups where TIB was >8 h and <6 h, systolic BP was significantly higher than the group where TIB ranged 6-8 h (134.

Impact of sleep on osteoporosis: sleep quality is associated with bone stiffness index.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the impact of sleep on osteoporosis.

Methods: The study used a baseline examination of the Hiroshima Sleep and Healthcare study, which was a cross-sectional and cohort study that addressed the association of sleep habits with lifestyle-related diseases. A total of 1032 participants (25-85 years of age) who underwent health examinations were included.

Neuroanatomic pathways associated with monoaminergic dysregulation after stroke.

Objective: We examined the complex relationship between lesion location, symptoms of depression (affective and apathetic), and monoamine dysfunction after stroke.

Methods: Magnetic resonance imaging was performed on 48 post-stroke patients that had been assessed for affective and apathetic symptoms using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the Apathy Scale, respectively. Noradrenalin (NA), dopamine (DA), their metabolites, and a metabolite of serotonin (5-HT) were measured using 24-h urine samples, and 5-HT and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol were measured using blood samples.

Effectiveness of group cognitive behavioral therapy for somatoform pain disorder patients in Japan: A preliminary non-case-control study.

Aims: Somatoform pain disorder is associated with psychosocial dysfunction, and psychotherapies, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), are thought to provide useful interventions to address such dysfunction as well as the pain itself. However, little is known about whether CBT for somatoform pain disorder is effective, including the long-term course of the illness, in non-Western populations. We therefore tailored such a program based on an existing CBT protocol and examined its effectiveness in Japan.

[Complementary and alternative medicine for insomnia].

Frequency of insomnia is increasing with age. Benzodiazepine receptor agonist has been prescribed for insomnia in the elderly, but there are some patients who complain the effect is not sufficient. Adherence for sleeping pills is very low in elderly Japanese, because there has been strong stigma against sleeping pills.

Psychosocial functioning is correlated with activation in the anterior cingulate cortex and left lateral prefrontal cortex during a verbal fluency task in euthymic bipolar disorder: a preliminary fMRI study.

Aim: Cognitive impairment may account for functional and occupational disability in patients with bipolar disorder even during periods of euthymia. While imaging suggests structural, neurochemical, and functional abnormalities in bipolar disorder patients, the pathophysiology of these deficits has not been elucidated. It was hypothesized that euthymic bipolar patients would have different cortical activation during a verbal fluency task compared to healthy controls, and that psychosocial functioning would be associated with prefrontal cortical activation during the task in the bipolar group.

Distinctive spontaneous regional neural activity in patients with somatoform pain disorder: a preliminary resting-state fMRI study.

This resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging study found that nine patients with somatoform pain disorder exhibited atypical precentral gyrus activation compared with 20 healthy controls. The role of the precentral gyrus in pain-related processing is discussed.

Neuroanatomic pathway associated with attentional deficits after stroke.

We used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the statistical parametric mapping (SPM) image analysis technique to localize lesions in post-stroke patients with attention deficits. SPM can be used to combine image data from multiple participants and correlate these images with other data sets. Magnetic resonance imaging acquisitions were obtained from 115 post-stroke patients, who were systemically assessed for attention deficits using a standardized test (the Clinical Assessment for Attention; CAT) that probes various domains of attention.

Distinctive neural responses to pain stimuli during induced sadness in patients with somatoform pain disorder: An fMRI study.

Pain is a multidimensional phenomenon. Patients with somatoform pain disorder suffer from long-lasting pain, with the pathology being closely associated with cognitive-emotional components. Differences between these patients and controls in cerebral responses to pain stimuli have been reported.

Automatic and intentional brain responses during evaluation of face approachability: correlations with trait anxiety.

Background: The judgment of the approachability of others based on their facial appearance often precedes social interaction. Whether we ultimately approach or avoid others may depend on such judgments.

Method: We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to determine the neural basis for such approachability judgments and the relationship between these judgments and trait anxiety.