Contribution of house dust contamination towards lead exposure among children in Karachi, Pakistan.

Lead exposure is associated with impaired neurodevelopment among children. House dust is recognized as one of the important secondary sources of lead exposure in children. We assessed the relationship between lead contamination in house dust and blood lead level in Pakistani children.

Concentration of folic acid (FA) in serum of Japanese pregnant women.

Objectives Exposure to inorganic arsenic (iAs) is a world-wide health concern. We reported that Japanese children and pregnant women are exposed to moderate levels of iAs through food. Reducing iAs contamination from foods of high iAs is an important issue unique in Japan.

Oral exposure to lead for Japanese children and pregnant women, estimated using duplicate food portions and house dust analyses.

Background: Lead is a toxic metal abundant in the environment. Consumption of food contaminated at low levels of lead, especially by small children and pregnant women, raises a health concern.

Methods: Duplicated food portions and drinking water were collected over 3 days from 88 children and 87 pregnant women in Shimotsuke, Tochigi, Japan.

Hijiki seaweed consumption elevates levels of inorganic arsenic intake in Japanese children and pregnant women.

Although exposure to inorganic arsenic is a health concern, especially in developing foetuses and children, dietary exposure levels among pregnant women and children have not been extensively studied in Japan. To address this shortcoming, we completed a 3-day duplicate diet study for 104 children and 101 pregnant women in two cities, Shimotsuke, Tochigi and Asahikawa, Hokkaido. The levels of intake of total and inorganic arsenic were estimated using the concentrations of total and inorganic arsenic in food and drinking water measured by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry.

Relationships between road-distance to primary care facilities and ischemic heart disease and stroke mortality in Hokkaido, Japan: A Bayesian hierarchical approach to ecological count data.

Objective: Poor access to a primary care physician may lead to poor control of risk factors for disease. This study investigated whether geographic access to a primary care physician was related to ischemic heart disease and stroke mortality.

Methods: Road-distances from the centroids of the basic unit blocks of the 2010 Japanese Census to the nearest primary care facilities in Hokkaido, northern Japan, were measured using geographic information system (GIS) software.

Social support and its interrelationships with demand-control model factors on presenteeism and absenteeism in Japanese civil servants.

Objectives: To elucidate the impact of social support and its interrelations with other demand-control-support (DCS) model factors on presenteeism and absenteeism, and to determine which DCS factors were most influential.

Methods: Questionnaires from 2535 local government employees were analyzed. The Brief Job Stress Questionnaire (BJSQ) was used to assess DCS factors including job demand, job control, and social support from supervisors and coworkers.

Association of premorbid personality with behavioral and psychological symptoms in dementia with Lewy bodies: Comparison with Alzheimer's disease patients.

Aim: The aim of this study was to elucidate the relation between premorbid personality traits and behavioral and psychological symptoms in dementia (BPSD) in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients.

Methods: Forty-one DLB patients and 98 AD patients were assessed for BPSD using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI). Each patient's midlife personality traits were rated by a family member using the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) questionnaire.

The Association between Prenatal Yoga and the Administration of Ritodrine Hydrochloride during Pregnancy: An Adjunct Study of the Japan Environment and Children's Study.

Introduction: While the beneficial effects of prenatal yoga have been reported in recent years, little is known about its effectiveness in pregnant Japanese women. Despite several adverse effects, ritodrine hydrochloride is frequently prescribed to suppress preterm labor in Japan, and its usage may therefore indicate cases of preterm labor. This study aimed to clarify the association between prenatal yoga and ritodrine hydrochloride use during pregnancy.

Relationships of job demand, job control, and social support on intention to leave and depressive symptoms in Japanese nurses.

This study aims to elucidate the relationships among the factors of the demand-control-support model (DCS) on the intention to leave a hospital job and depressive symptoms. Participants included 1,063 nurses. Job demand, job control, and support from supervisors were found to be significantly related to both the intention to leave and depressive symptoms.

[Effects of prenatal yoga: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials].

Objectives: While several studies on the preventive and therapeutic effects of prenatal yoga (maternity yoga) have been reported in recent years, there has been no systematic review on the effects of prenatal yoga based on randomized controlled trials (RCT). The purpose of this study, therefore, was to systematically review the literature to clarify the effects of prenatal yoga in RCT focusing on the contents of the intervention, the intervention means, and the frequency of practice.

Methods: The literature search was performed using the electronic database, PubMed.

Effects of work burden, job strain and support on depressive symptoms and burnout among Japanese physicians.

Objectives: Days off, on call, night duty, working hours and job stress can affect physicians' mental health, and support from supervisors and co-workers may have a buffering effect. This study elucidates whether job strain and job factors affect physicians' mental health, and whether support from supervisors and co-workers has a protective effect on their mental health.

Material And Methods: The subjects included 494 physicians.

Biomonitoring of mercury, cadmium, and lead exposure in Japanese children: a cross-sectional study.

Objectives: To measure current Hg, Cd, and Pb exposure in Japanese children, and to estimate dietary intakes of foods responsible for high body burden.

Methods: Blood, hair, and urine samples were collected from 9 to 10-year-old 229 children in Asahikawa and measured for Hg, Cd, and Pb in these matrices. Diet history questionnaire was used to estimate intake of marine foods and other food items.

Synergistic interaction between job control and social support at work on depression, burnout, and insomnia among Japanese civil servants.

Purpose: To elucidate whether low job control and low social support at work have synergistic interaction on mental health. The synergistic interaction was also analyzed after stratification by high and low job demands.

Methods: Participants were 2,121 local government employees in Asahikawa city, Japan.

Job stress and burnout among urban and rural hospital physicians in Japan.

Objective: To elucidate the differences in job stress and burnout status of Japanese hospital physicians between large cities, small cities, and towns and villages.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Postal self-administered questionnaires were distributed to 2937 alumni of Asahikawa Medical University.

Dampness, food habits, and sick building syndrome symptoms in elementary school pupils.

Objectives: We investigated dampness/mold in schools and dwellings, and food habits and subjective symptoms in elementary school pupils, in order to clarify the effect of dampness and food habits on subjective symptoms in elementary school pupils.

Methods: Questionnaires were used to investigate dampness in classrooms and dwellings in Hokkaido, Japan, and its effect on subjective symptoms in 1,077 pupils in 8 elementary schools. We used a dampness index for both the home and classroom; the index was the sum of the presence of four dampness indicators: (1) visible mold, (2) moldy odor, (3) water leakage, and (4) condensation on windowpanes.

Association between lifestyle habits and bone mineral density in Japanese juveniles.

Objectives: We explored the relationship between bone mineral density (BMD) and lifestyle in juveniles to identify factors leading to higher peak bone mass and prevention of osteoporosis in later life.

Methods: Juveniles (1,364 students: 770 boys and 594 girls, aged 6-18 years) attending school in Hokkaido prefecture, Japan, were asked to complete a brief self-administered diet history questionnaire for 10-year-olds (BDHQ10y) providing information about personal history, lifestyle, and intake of nutritional elements. In addition, BMD and grip strength were measured.

Relation of dampness to sick building syndrome in Japanese public apartment houses.

Objectives: The effect of dampness on sick building syndrome (SBS) symptoms has not been fully investigated in Japan. The purpose of this study is to elucidate the possible effects of dampness on SBS symptoms among residents in Japanese public apartment houses.

Methods: A questionnaire was used to investigate the degree of dampness in public apartment houses in Asahikawa, Japan, and its effect on SBS symptoms, involving 480 residents in 64 buildings.

A novel role of the NRF2 transcription factor in the regulation of arsenite-mediated keratin 16 gene expression in human keratinocytes.

Background: Inorganic sodium arsenite (iAs) is a ubiquitous environmental contaminant and is associated with an increased risk of skin hyperkeratosis and cancer.

Objectives: We investigated the molecular mechanisms underlying the regulation of the keratin 16 (K16) gene by iAs in the human keratinocyte cell line HaCaT.

Methods: We performed reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, luciferase assays, Western blots, and electrophoretic mobility shift assays to determine the transcriptional regulation of the K16 gene by iAs.

Comparative study of simple semiquantitative dust mite allergen tests.

Objective: Two simple, commercially available and semiquantitative dust mite allergen tests, namely, the Acarex test(®) and Mitey Checker(®), were compared using 2 and 10 μg of Der 1 allergen per gram of dust, as evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), to clarify which method is better suited for practical use.

Methods: Mite allergen exposure levels of 106 floor, bed and sofa surfaces were evaluated by the Acarex test(®), Mitey Checker(®), and ELISA. A template of 100 cm×100cm was placed on the same surfaces to identify the examined areas.

Prevalence of burnout among public health nurses in charge of mental health services and emergency care systems in Japan.

Objectives: The Community Health Act came into effect in 1997 in Japan. This act altered the work system for public health nurses (PHNs) in public health centers (PHCs) nationwide from region-specific to service-specific work. Such major changes to working environment in the new system seem to be exposing PHNs to various types of stress.