Publications by authors named "Yuka Asai"
Background: For optimal control of atopic dermatitis (AD), patient education is essential to complement traditional therapy. Patient education has proven to benefit AD outcomes, but previous methods of delivery are costly and time-consuming.
Objective: To assess the effectiveness of a one-page pictorial education tool at improving AD quality of life (QoL) and disease severity.
Atopic dermatitis (AD) is the most common chronic, inflammatory skin condition among the pediatric population. There is a need to better characterize the leukocytic landscape of AD for disease stratification, surveillance, and to identify therapeutic targets. We utilized a novel DNA methylation (DNAm)-based algorithm to study a publicly available, epigenome-wide DNAm dataset of pediatric AD patients and healthy subjects.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To characterise diagnostic pathways for patients with melanoma in routine practice and compare patient, disease and diagnostic interval (DI) characteristics across pathways.
Design: Descriptive cross-sectional study using administrative health data.
Setting: Population-based study in Ontario, Canada.
Article Synopsis
- The review covers the genetic and epigenetic factors related to food allergies, including their inheritance and the advantages and limitations of study methods.
- Genome-wide association studies have identified 16 significant genetic variants linked to food allergies, often overlapping with other allergic conditions.
- The article emphasizes the importance of integrating genetic and epigenetic data for understanding disease mechanisms and suggests future implications for predicting food allergy risks and responses to treatment.
Epigenetic and biological age acceleration in children with atopic dermatitis.
J Allergy Clin Immunol Glob
August 2024
Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease resulting from the complex interplay of genetic and environmental factors, meriting exploration using temporally dynamic biomarkers. DNA methylation-based algorithms have been trained to accurately estimate biological age, and deviation of predicted age from true age (epigenetic age acceleration) has been implicated in several inflammatory diseases, including asthma.
Objective: We sought to determine the role of epigenetic and biological aging, telomere length, and epigenetically inferred abundance of 7 inflammatory biomarkers in AD.
Article Synopsis
- Inconsistent reporting of outcomes in rosacea clinical trials is hindering accurate data analysis and meta-analyses, highlighting the need for standardized outcome measures.
- A core outcome set (COS) was developed through systematic literature reviews and a Delphi process, involving feedback from physicians and patients to identify essential outcomes in rosacea trials.
- The final COS includes 8 key domains, such as skin symptoms and patient satisfaction, which aim to enhance the comparability and relevance of future rosacea research and interventions.
Article Synopsis
- Prolonged cancer diagnosis times can increase patient anxiety and lead to worse outcomes; this study examined melanoma diagnostic times in Ontario, Canada from 2007-2019.
- The study analyzed 33,371 melanoma patients, finding the median diagnostic interval was 36 days with variations based on comorbidities, socioeconomic status, and patient history.
- Results showed significant differences in diagnostic times among health regions, indicating that system-level factors play a critical role in the diagnosis process for melanoma.
Background: The 8 edition UICC/AJCC TNM8 (Tumour, Nodes, Metastasis) melanoma staging system introduced several modifications from the 7 edition (TNM7), resulting in changes in survival and subgroup composition. We set out to address the limited validation of TNM8 (stages I-IV) in large population-based datasets.
Methods: This retrospective cohort-study included 6,414 patients from the population-based Ontario Cancer Registry diagnosed with cutaneous melanoma between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2012.
Economic burden of food allergy in Canada: Estimating costs and identifying determinants.
Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol
August 2022
Background: Limited data exist on the economic burden of food allergy (FA).
Objective: To assess FA-related direct (healthcare and out-of-pocket) and indirect (lost productivity) costs and their determinants in Canadian children and adults self-reporting FA.
Methods: FA-individuals self-reporting a convincing history or physician diagnosis were recruited through FA registries, an anaphylaxis registry, and advocacy associations, and electronically surveyed regarding FA-related healthcare use, out-of-pocket expenditures, and time lost from paid and unpaid labor.
It is no skin off my nose: The relationship between the skin and allergic rhinitis.
Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol
August 2021
Objective: Evidence supports the relationship between the skin barrier and allergic conditions. This narrative review evaluates what role the cutaneous barrier may play in the pathogenesis, disease course, and management of allergic rhinitis (AR).
Data Sources: A literature review of the MEDLINE (PubMed), Embase, Cochrane, and SCOPUS Sciverse databases was conducted to identify available evidence.
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has been unprecedented and has led to drastic reductions in non-urgent medical visits. Deferral of these visits may have critical health impact, including delayed diagnosis for melanoma and other skin cancers. We examined the influence of the pandemic on skin biopsy rates in a large population-based cohort.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCollege and university students are a group known for excessive sun exposure and indoor tanning. Health education campaigns for avoidance of ultraviolet (UV) radiation have been relatively unsuccessful in this population. This systematic review examines interventions aimed at post-secondary school young adults on college and university campuses for skin cancer awareness, photoprotection, and change in UV-exposure-related behavior.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Filaggrin is a protein integral to the structure and function of the epidermis. Filaggrin (FLG) loss-of-function (LOF) mutations are common and increase the risk of developing atopic dermatitis (AD) and ichthyosis vulgaris (IV). Epidemiologic data suggest a link between skin cancer and AD.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenetic and environmental susceptibility to food allergy in a registry of twins.
J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract
October 2020
Background: Polysensitivity is defined as three or more positive patch test reactions. The role of filaggrin gene (FLG) loss-of-function mutations in patients with polysensitivity has not been studied when barrier bypass and possible preceding barrier damage have been excluded.
Objectives: To determine whether FLG loss of function mutations play a role in patients with multiple contact sensitivities when barrier bypass is excluded.
Background: International studies have observed inequities in stage at diagnosis of melanoma. As this has not been sufficiently studied in Canada, the purpose of this study was to investigate whether there are disparities in the diagnosis of advanced-thickness melanoma in the province of Ontario.
Methods: In this retrospective population-based cohort study, we obtained, abstracted and linked pathology reports for a 65% random sample of all cases of invasive cutaneous melanoma in Ontario from 2007 to 2012 in the Ontario Cancer Registry.
Background: Melanoma is a serious, potentially lethal disease. It is one of very few common cancers whose incidence is rising in North America.
Objectives: The objective of this study was to examine trends in melanoma incidence in Ontario, Canada's most populous province, over the past 20 years.
Background: Peanut allergy (PA) is a complex disease with both environmental and genetic risk factors. Previously, PA loci were identified in filaggrin (FLG) and HLA in candidate gene studies, and loci in HLA were identified in a genome-wide association study and meta-analysis.
Objective: We sought to investigate genetic susceptibility to PA.