Japan's Conditional/Time-Limited Early Approval System in Regenerative Medicine: A Case Study of Rise and Falls of Autologous Skeletal Myoblast Sheets.

Japan's conditional/time-limited early approval program, initiated in 2014, aimed to advance regenerative medicine by expediting market access. However, the withdrawal of autologous skeletal myoblast sheets (Heartsheet) due to ineffectiveness raises concerns about the balance between rapid approval and scientific integrity. While the program seeks to boost innovation, it risks endorsing costly, unclear treatments under national health care.

Severe Delayed-Onset Meningitis Developed One Year After a Basilar Skull Fracture Without a Cerebrospinal Fluid Leak: A Case Report.

Traumatic cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage from skull base fractures increases the risk of bacterial meningitis, which is associated with a high mortality rate in adults, and commonly results in severe neurological outcomes. While most cases of CSF leakage occur within three months post-injury and generally resolve spontaneously, delayed-onset meningitis remains a challenging complication. Herein, we report a rare case of severe bacterial meningitis with an intraventricular abscess one year following a frontal skull base fracture, despite no CSF leak.

Population shifts during the reconstruction period in areas marked as evacuation zones after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident: a mobile spatial statistics data-based time-series clustering analysis.

An accurate understanding of the population is essential for the development of medical care and social resources. However, the development of transportation networks has increased temporal and spatial fluctuations in the population, making it difficult to accurately forecast medical care demand, especially during disaster recovery. This study examined the population movement in areas affected by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident using demographic data.

Difficulties faced by three hospitals evacuated from the urgent protective action planning zone after the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear power plant accident.

In radiological disasters, evacuating institutionalized individuals such as hospitalized patients and nursing home residents presents complex challenges. The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear power plant (FDNPP) accident, triggered by the Great East Japan Earthquake (GEJE), exposed critical issues in evacuation planning. This case series investigates the evacuation difficulties encountered by three hospitals situated 20 to 30 km from the FDNPP following the GEJE and FDNPP accident.

Enhancing healthcare planning using population data generated from mobile phone networks in Futaba County after the Great East Japan earthquake.

After the Great East Japan Earthquake, planning appropriate healthcare resource allocation was crucial. However, accurately estimating medical care demand was challenging due to substantial population fluctuations caused by extensive evacuations, compounded by the inaccuracy of conventional Resident Resister data in this context. This study employs population data generated from mobile phone network from 2019 to 2020 to conduct a detailed temporal and spatial population estimation in Futaba County, originally a complete evacuation zone.

Features of causes of indirect certified disaster-related death in areas affected by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident: an observational study.

Objectives: To investigate the details of disaster-related deaths due to the indirect health effects of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) accident following the Great East-Japan Earthquake in 2011 and serve as a source of reference in the event of similar circumstances in the future.

Design: A retrospective observational study.

Setting: Minamisoma City, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, which is located 13-38 km north of the FDNPP.

Fukushima Outpatient Pharmacotherapy Model for Breast Cancer.

The Fukushima Model of Outpatient Pharmacotherapy for Breast Cancer was developed to improve the pharmacological treatment of patients with breast cancer in the vast region of Fukushima Prefecture. This model addresses the challenges posed by the area's lower-than-average density of breast cancer specialists. In the core medical institutions of the prefecture's most populous municipalities, we introduced a telephone consultation service managed by pharmacists at local dispensing pharmacies.

Effects of switching from MiniMed™ 640G to 770G on continuous glucose monitoring metrics and DTR-QOL scores: An observational study of Japanese people with type 1 diabetes mellitus.

Aims/introduction: We evaluated the effect of the MiniMed™ 770G, an insulin pump using hybrid closed-loop technology, on blood glucose management and quality of life in Japanese people with type 1 diabetes.

Materials And Methods: This was a 52-week, prospective, observational study. Fifty Japanese people with type 1 diabetes switched from the MiniMed™ 640G to 770G, and we analyzed the continuous glucose monitoring data of 24 subjects who used auto mode throughout the study.

Herat's Catastrophe: Earthquakes Deepen Afghanistan's Healthcare Crisis.

In October 2023, Herat Province in Afghanistan was devastated by three earthquakes, resulting in 1,480 fatalities and 1,950 injuries, affecting approximately 154,000 people. The destruction included over 21,300 buildings, including 40 healthcare facilities, intensifying an existing humanitarian crisis under Taliban rule since August 2021. A comprehensive and coordinated response is vital for sustainable recovery and resilience, transcending political barriers to address the immediate and long-term needs of the Afghan population.

Non-consensual Sex Among Japanese Women in the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Large-Scale Nationwide Survey-Based Study.

Introduction and background Non-consensual sex, including rape and sexual assault, has been a global concern and may have been influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, information on this topic is limited. Therefore, our objective was to survey the incidence rate of non-consensual sex among Japanese women aged 15-79 years between April and September 2020, during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan.

Rising From the Rubble: Air Quality Concerns in Post-Earthquake Afghanistan.

This position paper highlights the dire impacts of environmental and household air pollution, which were responsible for 6.7 million deaths globally in 2019. These deaths occurred predominantly in low- and middle-income countries, with Afghanistan reporting the highest age-adjusted mortality rate.

Clinicopathological Findings of 220 Pediatric, Adolescent, and Young Adult Patients with Thyroid Cancer in Fukushima Medical University Hospital.

Thyroid ultrasound examinations (TUEs), conducted as part of the Fukushima Health Management Survey (FHMS), were initiated to monitor the health status of residents after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident owing to concerns regarding the increased incidence of thyroid cancer among children, as observed after the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident. This study reported the clinicopathological characteristics of patients with thyroid cancer diagnosed through the FHMS and treated at the Fukushima Medical University Hospital. Data regarding the clinicopathological characteristics of patients with thyroid cancer were collected and evaluated in this descriptive study.

Validation of the Japanese version of the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4-J) to screen for depression and anxiety.

Objective: We aimed to validate the Japanese version of the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4-J). People in Japan, especially healthcare workers (HCWs) suffer from high rates of mental health symptoms. The PHQ-4 is an established ultra-brief mental health measure used in various settings, populations and languages.

Increasing trends of pharmaceutical payments to breast cancer specialists in Japan: A retrospective study from 2016 to 2019.

Introduction: The introduction of new drugs often leads to aggressive promotion and potential financial conflicts of interest, which may bias treatment decisions and potentially harm patients. The breast cancer therapeutics market is rapidly evolving globally, and Japan is no exception. This study aimed to analyze trends in pharmaceutical payments to breast cancer specialists in Japan from 2016 to 2019, focusing on company-level data, relationships with new drug introductions, and individual specialist payment patterns.

Cardiovascular, renal and mortality risk by the KDIGO heatmap in Japan.

Background: This study aimed to assess the prognosis of people with chronic kidney disease (CKD) in Japan using the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) heatmap.

Methods: The prognoses of individuals with estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFR) <90 mL/min/1.73 m were evaluated based on the KDIGO heatmap using an electronic medical record database in Japan.