Publications by authors named "Kazutoshi Cho"

Article Synopsis
  • This study examines how bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and home respiratory care (HRC) impact the growth of extremely preterm infants from birth to age 5.
  • Researchers analyzed data from 788 infants to assess their weight and length over time, finding that those with BPD who received HRC grew less than those in other groups.
  • The findings suggest that while BPD with HRC leads to significant growth delays, the influence of BPD on length growth lessens as the children age.
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Background: Children born with very low birth weight (VLBW) are at higher risk for cognitive impairment, including language deficits and sensorimotor difficulties. Voice-evoked response (P1m), which has been suggested as a language development biomarker in young children, remains unexplored for its efficacy in VLBW children. Furthermore, the relation between P1m and sensory difficulties in VLBW children remains unclear.

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We encountered a previously healthy 3-year-old girl with interstitial pneumonitis that initially developed due to human adenovirus type 2 infection and exacerbated by primary human herpesvirus 7 infection. A comprehensive serum biomarker analysis showed patterns that differed by viral infection, suggesting that respiratory and lymphotropic viral infections might have different pathophysiology in interstitial pneumonitis.

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Background: Surfactant protein C (SP-C) disorder is a major component of hereditary interstitial lung disease (HILD) among Japanese. The correlation between clinical outcomes and the phenotype/genotype of SP-C disorder has not been evaluated comprehensively. The current study aimed to evaluate the phenotype/genotype correlated with poor outcomes in patients with SP-C disorder.

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Background: The association between prenatal metal exposure and congenital anomalies is unclear. We aimed to examine the association between exposure to cadmium, lead, mercury, selenium, and manganese and physical abnormalities.

Methods: Data from 89,887 pregnant women with singleton pregnancies who participated in the Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS) were used.

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A number of studies have been made on the sleep characteristics of children born preterm in an attempt to develop methods to address the sleep problems commonly observed among such children. However, the reported sleep characteristics from these studies vary depending on the observation methods used, i.e.

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Aims/introduction: This study aimed to investigate the neurodevelopment of infants born to women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).

Materials And Methods: Data from the National Birth Cohort in the Japan Environment and Children's Study from 2011 to 2014 (n = 81,705) were used. Japan uses the GDM guidelines of the International Association of Diabetes and Pregnancy Study Groups.

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Article Synopsis
  • Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) is diagnosed based on a deficiency of lung surfactant, and European guidelines recommend surfactant administration for patients requiring over 0.3 fraction of inspired oxygen.
  • A survey was conducted among 111 neonatal intensive care units in Japan, with a high response rate of 91%, to assess how RDS is diagnosed and treated.
  • The study found that Japanese practitioners primarily use chest radiography and stable microbubble ratings for RDS diagnosis, and most do not follow the European guidelines for surfactant administration, indicating a need for further research on best practices.
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  • PFAS (Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl substances) disrupt endocrine function and may influence sexual differentiation, measured by the 2D:4D digit ratio, which reflects prenatal hormone exposure.
  • The study involved 1,024 participants to explore how specific ESR1 polymorphisms (genetic variations) affect this relationship with PFAS exposure.
  • Results showed that higher maternal levels of PFAS, particularly PFOA and PFDoDA, significantly increased the 2D:4D ratio in children with certain ESR1 genotypes, indicating a gene-environment interaction that could impact sex differentiation, especially in males.
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Article Synopsis
  • This study explored how gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) affects perinatal outcomes based on women's pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and gestational weight gain (GWG).
  • Utilizing data from a large Japanese birth cohort (n = 85,228), researchers compared perinatal outcomes between women with and without GDM, focusing on the odds of having small or large infants and pregnancy complications.
  • The findings indicated that women with a BMI of ≥25.0 kg/m² and GDM had a significantly higher risk of both small and large for gestational age infants depending on their weight gain during pregnancy, and they were also at increased risk for hypertensive disorders.
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Prenatal sex hormones affect fetal growth; for example, prenatal exposure to low levels of androgen accelerates female puberty onset. We assessed the association of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in maternal sera and infant genotypes of genes encoding enzymes involved in sex steroid hormone biosynthesis on cord sera sex hormone levels in a prospective birth cohort study of healthy pregnant Japanese women (n = 224) recruited in Sapporo between July 2002 and October 2005. We analyzed PFAS and five sex hormone levels using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

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Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common pathogen that causes extremely severe respiratory symptoms in the first few weeks and months of life. In infants with cardiopulmonary diseases, RSV infections have a significant clinical impact. Palivizumab, a humanised monoclonal antibody for RSV, has been shown to significantly reduce the rate of hospitalisation of high-risk infants diagnosed with RSV.

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Article Synopsis
  • * We investigated the sleep patterns of 101 premature toddlers to see how these relate to cognitive development, using sleep tracking and a psychological test.
  • * Results showed no link between nap or nighttime sleep duration and cognitive development, but consistent daily wake times were positively associated with better cognitive outcomes, indicating stable sleep patterns may support brain growth in preterm toddlers.
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Analysis of autoinflammatory and immunodeficiency disorders elucidates human immunity and fosters the development of targeted therapies. Oligoadenylate synthetase 1 is a type I interferon-induced, intracellular double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) sensor that generates 2'-5'-oligoadenylate to activate ribonuclease L (RNase L) as a means of antiviral defense. We identified four de novo heterozygous gain-of-function variants in six patients with a polymorphic autoinflammatory immunodeficiency characterized by recurrent fever, dermatitis, inflammatory bowel disease, pulmonary alveolar proteinosis, and hypogammaglobulinemia.

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  • This study investigates how maternal alcohol consumption impacts fetal growth, focusing on Japanese women during pregnancy.
  • It found that drinking alcohol in the second and third trimesters negatively affects birth weight, body length, and head circumference, particularly at certain consumption levels.
  • The findings highlight the need for public health initiatives to educate pregnant women on the risks of alcohol, emphasizing that even low-to-moderate consumption can hinder fetal development.
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Background: Alveolar capillary dysplasia with misalignment of pulmonary veins (ACDMPV) is a rare and fatal disorder that occurs in the developing fetal lungs; at birth, infants exhibit an oxygenation disorder accompanied by severe pulmonary hypertension (PH) and have a very short life span. ACDMPV is definitively diagnosed by pathological findings, and infants born with unexplained severe PH may not be properly diagnosed without a biopsy or autopsy.

Methods: Japanese infants with unexplained severe PH were enrolled in this study.

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The purpose of the present study is to examine the association between toddlers' sleep arrangements and their nighttime sleep duration and other sleep variables. For this investigation, we performed a study in which child activity and sleep levels were recorded using actigraphy. The parents of 1.

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Background: Total anomalous pulmonary venous connection (TAPVC) is a critical congenital heart disease for which emergency surgery is required after birth. In cases of no intervention, TAPVC is associated with a high mortality rate in the first year of life. Although foetal echocardiographic techniques for diagnosing TAPVC have improved, TAPVC remains one of the most difficult congenital heart diseases to diagnose via foetal echocardiography.

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Objectives: Previous studies indicated a significant association between small for gestational age (SGA) in infants and their parents' socioeconomic status (SES). Thus, this study aimed to examine if parental factors, such as maternal smoking, and the pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) could mediate the associations between parental SES and SGA.

Methods: The participants of this study were pregnant women who enrolled in an ongoing birth cohort study, the Hokkaido study, during the first trimester of their pregnancies.

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