Children in Tokyo Have a Long Sustained Axial Length from Age 3 Years: The Tokyo Myopia Study.

Background: myopia prevalence is high among Japanese schoolchildren, but the underlying causes are unclear. Objective: To examine the distributions of ocular biometry and refraction and their associations with lifestyle variables among Japanese schoolchildren. Methods: This cross-sectional school-based study included 2140 children aged 3−14 years in Tokyo, Japan, and evaluated the distributions under non-cycloplegic conditions and the associated environmental factors.

Impact of school closure due to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on body mass index in Japanese children: Retrospective longitudinal study.

Aim: During the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, the governments of many countries responded to high levels of infection with lockdowns. As a result, some children were reported to experience weight gain. The aim of the present study was to examine the impact of school closures on body mass index (BMI) in Japanese children.

Blood Pressure Tracking From Childhood to Adulthood.

Hypertension is the most common non-communicable disease among adults and is the most important modifiable risk factor for premature cardiovascular disease. The increasing worldwide burden of hypertension is a major global health issue. Early prevention with lifestyle modification or pharmaceutical treatment reduces the incidence of hypertension and the risk of subsequent cardiovascular disease.

Changes in epidemiological characteristics and sero-prevalence against the varicella zoster virus in school-age children after the introduction of a national immunization program in Japan.

A national immunization program using two doses of live attenuated varicella vaccine was introduced for children aged one to two years in Japan in October 2014. Varicella cases declined after 2014, and immunological status against varicella among vaccinated children changed in post-vaccination era. A retrospective observational study of anti-varicella antibody seroprevalence, varicella vaccination status, and history of varicella among 528 students in the first grade of elementary school was conducted.

Association of childhood anthropometric measurements and laboratory parameters with high blood pressure in young adults.

Early intervention to manage high blood pressure (BP) in young adulthood is a promising approach for the prevention of future cardiovascular diseases. We aimed to examine the ability of childhood health information to predict the incidence of young adults with high BP. This cohort study included baseline clinical data of Japanese individuals aged 12-13 years.

Low birth weight is associated with decline in renal function in Japanese male and female adolescents.

Background: Low birth weight (LBW) is a risk factor for chronic kidney disease (CKD) in later life and is becoming increasingly common in developed countries, including Japan. Furthermore, a serial decrease in birth weight has been associated with an increasing prevalence of CKD stage 2 in male Japanese adolescents. Sex-specific differences affect CKD susceptibility, and the association between birth weight and CKD in women, has not been elucidated.

Current Prevalence of Myopia and Association of Myopia With Environmental Factors Among Schoolchildren in Japan.

Importance: Given the estimates of increasing prevalence of myopia, especially in Asia, it is important to determine the current prevalence of myopia among populations of schoolchildren in Japan.

Objective: To investigate the current prevalence rate of myopia and the association between environmental factors and myopia in Japanese schoolchildren.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This cross-sectional study assessed 1478 participants, including 726 elementary school students and 752 junior high school students, at 2 schools in Tokyo, Japan, who underwent eye examinations from April 1 to May 31, 2017, that included measurement of the refractive errors by autorefractometry with noncycloplegic refraction and ocular biometric factors.

Chronotropic incompetence to exercise in anorexia nervosa patients during the body-weight recovery phase as an index of insufficient treatment.

Resting bradycardia is an important symptom for early diagnosis of anorexia nervosa (AN) during weight loss, and it improves with body-weight recovery. However, chronotropic incompetence (CI) in exercise is observed in some patients with AN despite amelioration of resting bradycardia in the recovery phase. We examined the relationship between CI in exercise and other parameters in patients with AN during the recovery phase.

School-age children and adolescents suspected of having been to be infected with pertussis in Japan.

Many countries including Japan have adapted acellular pertussis vaccines combined with diphtheria and tetanus toxoids (DTaP). DTaP vaccine coverage is approximately >90%, but pertussis re-emergence has been observed since 2000 in Japan. In the present study, anti-pertussis antibodies were investigated among school-age children and adolescents from 2013 to 2015.

Temporal trends in renal function and birthweight in Japanese adolescent males (1998-2015).

Background: Low birthweight (LBW) is a worldwide public health problem, demonstrating an increasing incidence in developed countries, including Japan. LBW is also a risk factor for later development of chronic kidney disease (CKD). To date, studies have not evaluated the population impacts of increasing LBW rates on renal function.

Convalescent resting tachycardia predicts unfavorable outcome of anorexia nervosa.

Background: In patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) who have tachycardia during the clinical course, difficulty in treatment has been observed. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the association between heart rate (HR) in the weight loss and weight recovery periods, and outcome.

Methods: The subjects consisted of 40 girls with AN (age at onset, 8-16 years).

Influenza vaccination of schoolchildren and influenza outbreaks in a school.

Background: The objective of this retrospective descriptive study was to determine whether the universal influenza vaccination for schoolchildren was effective in controlling influenza outbreaks in a school. A universal vaccination program for schoolchildren was started in Japan in the 1960s, but the government abandoned the program in 1994 because of lack of evidence that the program was effective in preventing influenza in schoolchildren.

Methods: Influenza vaccine coverage rates, total numbers of class cancellation days, and absentee rates were reviewed in a single elementary school during the 24-year period during 1984-2007.

Height-specific body mass index reference curves for Japanese children and adolescents 5-17 years of age.

Background: Body mass index (BMI) reference values in consideration of height variation have not previously been reported. This study established height-specific BMI reference curves for Japanese children and adolescents aged from 5 to 17 years.

Methods: The 2001 nationwide survey data were utilized for the study.