Epidemiology and molecular characterization of fecal carriage of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant Enterobacterales among elderly residents in Japan.

Introduction: The spread of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant Gram-negative bacteria is a serious concern in acute and post-acute care settings. This study aimed to understand the epidemiology and molecular background of fecal colonization of resistant Enterobacterales in elderly people.

Methods: In December 2015-December 2017, stool or rectal swab samples were collected from 101 elderly patients receiving home care, using long-term care facilities (LTCF), and living in nursing homes repeatedly at 3-9-month intervals.

Effectiveness of educational program using printed educational material on care burden distress among staff of residential aged care facilities without medical specialists and/or registered nurses: Cluster quasi-randomization study.

Aim: Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia are an important source of distress for caregivers. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of educational intervention using printed educational material for reducing distress induced by behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia among caregivers working at facilities without medical specialists and/or registered nurses.

Methods: A cluster quasi-randomized, controlled comparative trial was carried out at 17 facilities in Japan.

The occurrence of visual and cognitive impairment, and eye diseases in the super-elderly in Japan: a cross-sectional single-center study.

Background: The current state of eye diseases and treatments in the elderly as well as the relationships between dementia and systemic diseases remain unclear. Therefore, this study evaluated the prevalence of eye diseases, visual impairment, cognitive impairment, and falls (which are an important health issue and are considered one of the Geriatric Giants) in super-elderly people in Japan.

Methods: The subjects were 31 elderly people (62 eyes; mean age: 84.

Vitamin D deficiency in elderly women in nursing homes: investigation with consideration of decreased activation function from the kidneys.

Objectives: To determine the approximate percentage of women in nursing homes who have vitamin D deficiency and to investigate whether, in assessing vitamin D status in elderly women, there are problems with measuring only 25 hydroxy-vitamin D(3) (25(OH)D(3) ) and whether decreased vitamin D activation as a result of poor renal function needs to be considered.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Forty-eight nursing homes in Japan.

Bone mineral analysis through dual energy X-ray absorptiometry in laboratory animals.

To determine how to eliminate species difference in animal bone experiment, bone mineral content (BMC) was measured using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) on the femurs of laboratory mice (Mus musculus) and rats (Rattus norvegicus), and common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). Measures were taken on femurs in situ, detached from the body, skinned and defleshed, or dried completely. When the BMC of the bone measured in the intact limb attached to the trunk was set at 100%, the actual BMC of the dry bone was 58.

Relation of falls efficacy scale (FES) to quality of life among nursing home female residents with comparatively intact cognitive function in Japan.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relation of the Falls Efficacy Scale (FES) to quality of life (QOL) among nursing home residents. The subjects were 133 institutionalized women aged 70 years or older. They had comparatively intact cognitive function, with a Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score of 15 or more, and could provide sufficient informed consent for a questionnaire survey.

Relationship between oral function and general condition among Japanese nursing home residents.

The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between oral function and general condition among Japanese nursing home residents. The hypothesis was that oral function is one of the most important factors for the maintenance of general condition in dependent elderly. Seventy-nine residents of a nursing home in Japan participated in this study (54 women and 25 men, age range: 65-95 years, mean age: 82.

Comparison of rat mandible bone characteristics in F344 substrains, F344/Du and F344/N.

The characteristics of the mandible bone were compared through DXA methods between two major substrains of F344 rats, F344/DuCrlCrlj and F344/NSlc at around 60 days of age. Since these two substrains are clearly different in survival and mandible morphology, some genetic differences are supposed to exist. In contrast to a previous microsatellite analysis, clear and significant differences were detected in the body and mandible weights, the mandible bone mineral contents (BMC), bone area (AREA), bone mineral density (BMD) and bone mineral ratio (BMR), between F344/DuCrlCrlj and F344/NSlc, with the mandible molar teeth intact in the bone.

Colonization of dental plaque by respiratory pathogens in dependent elderly.

Pneumonia can be a life-threatening infection, especially in the elderly, and it is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. The purpose of this study was to assess the existence of oral infectious pathogens potentially causing the respiratory disease in the dependent elderly. The dental plaques of 138 dependent elderly were examined to identify microorganisms by the culture method.

Proposal of a novel method to evaluate anastomotic tension in esophageal atresia with a distal tracheoesophageal fistula.

Anastomotic tension with the potential to lead to post-operative complication is usually evaluated using gap length before anastomosis in patients with esophageal atresia and a distal tracheoesophageal fistula (EA with a TEF). However a uniform, accurate measurement of gap length is not possible and estimation of the length the delicate distal esophageal stump is stretched by the anastomosis may have greater utility. The aim of this paper was to propose a novel method to evaluate the anastomotic tension in EA with a TEF.

Variations in aganglionic segment length of the enteric neural plexus in Mowat-Wilson syndrome.

Background/purpose: Patients with zinc finger homeo box 1B (ZFHX1B) mutations or deletions develop multiple congenital anomalies including Hirschsprung disease, known as Mowat-Wilson syndrome (MWS). In this study, we investigated variations in the enteric neural plexus abnormalities in MWS using morphometry-based histopathologic analysis.

Methods: Seven patients with MWS (3 with mutations in exon 8 of ZFHX1B and 4 with deletions) who had undergone modified Duhamel's operations for Hirschsprung disease were examined.

Videofluorographic observations on swallowing in patients with dysphagia due to neurodegenerative diseases.

We examined three intervention methods for their efficacy in preventing aspiration in 25 patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and 23 patients with degenerative cerebellar ataxia (CA). On videofluoroscopic examination. 13 patients with PD (52%) and 7 patients with CA (30.

Developing an instrument to support oral care in the elderly.

Background: The dramatic increase in the number of dependent elderly in developed countries has created a great need for their improved oral care. However, optimal oral care by caregivers is not possible because of time constraints, difficulty involved in brushing other individuals' teeth, lack of co-operation, and the lack of perceived need. Therefore, the development of an effective instrument simplifying and supporting oral care to relieve the strain on caregivers is a matter of some urgency.

Cys611Ser mutation in RET proto-oncogene in a kindred with medullary thyroid carcinoma and Hirschsprung's disease.

Germline mutations in the RET proto-oncogene are responsible for the development of human hereditary diseases, including multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) type 2A and 2B, familial medullary thyroid carcinoma (FMTC), and Hirschsprung's disease (HSCR). It has been reported that some families developed both MEN 2A/FMTC and HSCR, in which a mutation in a cysteine residue at codon 609, 618, or 620 in the RET gene was present. Here we report a novel RET mutation detected in a Japanese family with medullary thyroid carcinoma and HSCR.

Clinical features of a form of Hirschsprung's disease caused by a novel genetic abnormality.

Background/purpose: The aim of this report is to describe the pattern of similarities among the patients, exemplifying a newly recognized form of Hirschsprung's disease (HSCR) caused by mutations of ZFHX1B encoding Smad interacting protein-1.

Methods: Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) using several cDNAs and RP11-BAC clones and mutation gene scanning using direct nucleotide sequencing analysis of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were conducted. Personal records of the patients also were analyzed retrospectively to confirm the clinical features.