Increase in the number of female doctors and the challenges that Japan's medical system must face.

Japan has seen an increase in female physicians recently, yet it still lags behind other Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. A major barrier has been the historical discrimination against women in medical school admissions. In recent years, female enrolment in medical schools has risen, surpassing 40% in 2024, reflecting a broader societal shift.

Financial inclusion and financial gerontology in Japan's aging society.

Japan, the world's most rapidly aging society, faces increasing financial strains related to personalized dementia care. The government has shifted its focus from prevention to coexistence with dementia, as outlined in the 2023 Basic Act on Dementia. Emphasis on financial inclusion aligns with the G20's 2019 "Fukuoka Policy Priorities on Aging and Financial Inclusion", which addresses financial exclusion due to cognitive decline and poor financial literacy.

Assessment of Stress and Well-Being of Japanese Employees Using Wearable Devices for Sleep Monitoring Combined With Ecological Momentary Assessment: Pilot Observational Study.

Background: Poor sleep quality can elevate stress levels and diminish overall well-being. Japanese individuals often experience sleep deprivation, and workers have high levels of stress. Nevertheless, research examining the connection between objective sleep assessments and stress levels, as well as overall well-being, among Japanese workers is lacking.

Write your paper on the motherland?

'Write your paper on the motherland' is an influential Chinese slogan encouraging researchers to focus on domestic issues and prioritize local applications of their work, though interpretations differ. The 2024 'International Journal Early Warning List' update sparked renewed debate over the slogan's meaning. This letter argues that misinterpreting this slogan as merely promoting domestic journal submissions could lead to a more conservative submission behavior and a more closed academic system.

Live two-way video versus face-to-face treatment for depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorder: A 24-week randomized controlled trial.

Aim: Live two-way video, easily accessible from home via smartphones and other devices, is becoming a new way of providing psychiatric treatment. However, lack of evidence for real-world clinical setting effectiveness hampers its approval by medical insurance in some countries. Here, we conducted the first large-scale pragmatic, randomized controlled trial to determine the effectiveness of long-term treatment for multiple psychiatric disorders via two-way video using smartphones and other devices, which are currently the primary means of telecommunication.

Associations between glycemic variability, sleep quality, and daily steps in subjects without diabetes using wearable devices.

Background: Since there are limited studies on the associations between glycemic variability (GV) and sleep quality or physical activity in subjects without diabetes, we evaluated the associations between GV, as assessed by continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), and both sleep quality and daily steps using wearable devices in healthy individuals.

Methods: Forty participants without diabetes were monitored by both an intermittently scanned CGM and a smartwatch-type activity tracker for 2 weeks. The standard deviation (SD) and coefficient of variation (CV) of glucose were evaluated as indices of GV.

Telepsychiatry versus face-to-face treatment: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed healthcare significantly and telepsychiatry is now the primary means of treatment in some countries.

Aims: To compare the efficacy of telepsychiatry and face-to-face treatment.

Method: A comprehensive meta-analysis comparing telepsychiatry with face-to-face treatment for psychiatric disorders.

Survival impact of pancreatic resection for metastases in the pancreas: A retrospective multi-center study.

Background: Pancreatic metastases from other primary malignancies are rare. There is no clear evidence for a treatment strategy for this condition. The purpose of this study was to assess the clinical outcomes, including prognostic factors for pancreatic resection of metastatic tumors in the pancreas, through a retrospective review.

Development of medical device software for the screening and assessment of depression severity using data collected from a wristband-type wearable device: SWIFT study protocol.

Introduction: Few biomarkers can be used clinically to diagnose and assess the severity of depression. However, a decrease in activity and sleep efficiency can be observed in depressed patients, and recent technological developments have made it possible to measure these changes. In addition, physiological changes, such as heart rate variability, can be used to distinguish depressed patients from normal persons; these parameters can be used to improve diagnostic accuracy.

Survival Impact of Perioperative Red Blood Cell Transfusion During Pancreatectomy in Patients With Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma: A Propensity Score Matching Analysis.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to show the real impact of perioperative red blood cell transfusion (PBT) on prognosis in patients who underwent pancreatectomy for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Methods: Patients who underwent pancreatectomy between 2004 and 2018 were enrolled. Short- and long-term outcomes in patients who received PBT (PBT group) were compared with those who did not (non-PBT group).

Assessment for the minimal invasiveness of laparoscopic liver resection by interleukin-6 and thrombospondin-1.

Background: Laparoscopic surgery has been introduced as a minimally invasive technique for the treatment of various field. However, there are few reports that have scientifically investigated the minimally invasive nature of laparoscopic liver resection (LLR).

Aim: To investigate whether LLR is scientifically less invasive than open liver resection.

Clinical significance of preoperative inflammation-based score for the prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma who underwent hepatectomy.

Purposes: The present study investigated the prognostic value of inflammation-based prognostic scores in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who underwent hepatectomy.

Methods: In total, 493 patients diagnosed HCC using the Milan criteria who underwent hepatic resection were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were evaluated according to several prognostic nutrition indices.

Current Status and Challenges of the Dissemination of Telemedicine in Japan After the Start of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The use of telemedicine is expanding worldwide in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and deregulation is occurring even in countries with strict regulations, such as Japan. We conducted a narrative review of the activities and initiatives undertaken by the government and professional organizations to promote the use of telemedicine in Japan from January 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began, to September 2021. Re In Japan, where before the pandemic the spread of telemedicine had been limited, various recommendations and deregulations have now been made, resulting in the expanded use of telemedicine.