Serum B-cell maturation antigen could be a simple and accurate biomarker to identify and prognosticate monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance and smoldering multiple myeloma.

Not available.

Genome Analysis of Japanese Yersinia pseudotuberculosis Strains Isolated From Kawasaki Disease Patients and Other Sources and Their Phylogenetic Positions in the Global Y. pseudotuberculosis Population.

Yersinia pseudotuberculosis (Ypt) is a gram-negative bacterium that infects both humans and animals primarily through fecal‒oral transmission. While Ypt causes acute gastroenteritis in humans, an association with Kawasaki disease (KD), a disease that primarily affects infants and young children and causes multisystemic vasculitis, has also been suspected. Although KD represents a significant health concern worldwide, the highest annual incidence rate is reported in Japan.

Enhancing quality of care for older adults: The age-friendly health system (4Ms framework) and the role of general medicine physicians as system-based complexologists.

The aging population presents critical challenges to global healthcare systems, with Japan expected to have 35% of its population aged 65 or older by 2040. Older adults often experience multimorbidity, cognitive impairments, and physical frailties, increasing healthcare utilization and costs. Traditional medical approaches that focus on organ-specific diagnoses are insufficient for addressing these multifaceted needs.

Diagnostic Techniques for Posterior Cutaneous Nerve Entrapment Syndrome.

This case report highlights the diagnostic process for posterior cutaneous nerve entrapment syndrome (POCNES) in an older adult female patient, with an emphasis on using video demonstrations to guide clinicians. POCNES should be diagnosed based on a combination of specific clinical features, including localized back pain accompanied by pinpoint tenderness lateral to the spinous process, cutaneous sensory abnormalities over the area of pain, severe pain response to pressure on the tender point, and normal clinical and imaging findings. This case demonstrates how these criteria were identified via a thorough physical examination captured on video to provide a visual guide for clinicians.

Unique gel-like colony forming bacterium sp. nov., isolated from a membrane bioreactor (MBR) treating sewage.

A novel, gelatinous, colony-forming, rod-shaped bacterial strain, designated IK01 was isolated from biofilms formed on the membrane surface of a sewage-treating membrane bioreactor (MBR). Strain IK01 produced gelatinous and almost transparent colonies at lower medium concentrations. Fourier transform infrared analysis of the gelatinous colony matrix showed that the matrix could be a biofilm substance.