Changes in Health-related Quality of Life Among Impoverished Persons in the Free/Low-Cost Medical Care Program in Japan: Evidence From a Prospective Cohort Study.

Background: The Free/Low-Cost Medical Care Program (FLCMC) can subsidize the payment (exempt/lower) in designated institutions in Japan. Given that poverty is a multidimensional concept including social isolation, the FLCMC applicants may need social support over and above financial aid to improve their quality of life. However, there was no data to discuss what services should be provided and to whom.

Structure-based design, synthesis, and evaluation of peptide-mimetic SARS 3CL protease inhibitors.

The design and evaluation of low molecular weight peptide-based severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) chymotrypsin-like protease (3CL) protease inhibitors are described. A substrate-based peptide aldehyde was selected as a starting compound, and optimum side-chain structures were determined, based on a comparison of inhibitory activities with Michael type inhibitors. For the efficient screening of peptide aldehydes containing a specific C-terminal residue, a new approach employing thioacetal to aldehyde conversion mediated by N-bromosuccinimide was devised.

Prevalence and correlates of physiological valvular regurgitation in healthy subjects.

Background: Although echo Doppler machines have consistently advanced within a quarter of a century, age related prevalence of valvular regurgitation detected by currently available echo machines remains uncertain. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence and correlates of valvular regurgitation in healthy individuals.

Methods And Results: A total of 1,333 apparently healthy individuals were enrolled in this study.

Age- and gender-specific changes in the left ventricular relaxation: a Doppler echocardiographic study in healthy individuals.

Background: Although left ventricular diastolic function has been shown to deteriorate with advancing age, its gender-specific change is unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate age- and gender-specific changes in tissue Doppler-derived left ventricular diastolic index, E'.

Methods And Results: A total of 1333 healthy individual without known heart disease or hypertension (mean age, 55 years; range, 10 to 89) were enrolled and studied.

Development of the incident reporting system using the nursing administrative database.

A role of incident reporting system has become more important for improving of the patient safety. However, the more various causes managers seek for, the longer time healthcare providers send to report near-miss/ medical errors. The purpose of our work was to try to develop "the incident reporting system" utilized the nursing administrative database.

Effectiveness of right or left radial approach for coronary angiography.

The transradial approach for catheterization is becoming increasingly more popular. At present, the choice of the right or left radial artery depends on the operator's preference. We examined how the laterality influenced the effectiveness of the approach.

Bovine lactoferrin has a nitric oxide-dependent hypotensive effect in rats.

Lactoferrin (LF) is a multifunctional protein that is found in milk, neutrophils, and other biological fluids. Under inflammatory conditions, LF production is increased in the periphery by neutrophils. However, the cardiovascular function of LF is still unknown.

Preoperative assessment of hepatic function: Utility of a new convenient two-compartment model analysis using galactosyl human serum albumin scintigraphy.

Background And Aim: Preoperative hepatic function was evaluated using technetium-99 m-diethylenetriaminepenta-acetic acid-galactosyl-human serum albumin (Tc-GSA) and a scintillation camera to detect hepatic Tc-GSA uptake by the asialoglycoprotein receptor.

Methods: Sixty-two preoperative patients with liver cancer, including hepatocellular and cholangiocellular carcinomas, were studied, using two-parameter two-compartment model analysis. This model is simpler than either the three- or five-compartment model, both of which are accurate but which require complicated analysis and enormous calculation.