Impact of Oral Health Status on Perceived Dental Problems Among Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Personnel.

Introduction: Dental problems may have a great impact on military mission effectiveness, as such, evidence-based dental classification guidelines are required for minimizing the occurrence of dental problems. The aim of this study is to elucidate the independent contribution of each oral disease to the perception of dental problems among Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) personnel in order to make the dental classification guidelines more precise for the prediction of future dental problems.

Materials And Methods: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force personnel who were examined during the annual dental checkup in 2013 answered questions about the experience of dental problems within the last 12 months in 2014.

Programmed Cell Death-1 Pathway Deficiency Enhances Autoimmunity Leading to Dacryoadenitis of Mice.

Programmed cell death protein (PD)-1 is a coinhibitory molecule that suppresses immune response and maintains immune homeostasis. Moreover, the PD-1 pathway blocks cancers from being attacked by immune cells. Anti-PD-1 antibody therapy such as nivolumab improves survival in cancer patients.

Chronic chorioretinal detachment under normal intraocular pressure in eye with uveitic glaucoma after trabeculectomy: A case report.

Rationale: Choroidal detachment is a major postoperative complication of trabeculectomy. Postoperative choroidal detachment occurs with low intraocular pressure (IOP), and is naturally resolved by elevation of IOP. We report a case of chronic chorioretinal detachment (CRD) in the eye with uveitic glaucoma after trabeculectomy which persisted with normal IOP resistant for medication and required surgery.

Age-related differences in the clinical features of ocular sarcoidosis.

The distribution of age at diagnosis in ocular sarcoidosis has shifted towards the older age groups in developed countries. In systemic sarcoidosis, age-related differences in the clinical presentation, which reflect the therapeutic strategies, was reported. We retrospectively compared 100 consecutive patients from April 2010 to March 2016 who were initially diagnosed with ocular sarcoidosis by International Workshop on Ocular Sarcoidosis criteria.

Common variant of BCAS3 is associated with gout risk in Japanese population: the first replication study after gout GWAS in Han Chinese.

Background: Gout is a common disease resulting from hyperuricemia which causes acute arthritis. A recent genome-wide association study (GWAS) of gout identified three new loci for gout in Han Chinese: regulatory factor X3 (RFX3), potassium voltage-gated channel subfamily Q member 1 (KCNQ1), and breast carcinoma amplified sequence 3 (BCAS3). The lack of any replication studies of these three loci using other population groups prompted us to perform a replication study with Japanese clinically defined gout cases and controls.

Epidemiological patterns of traumatic musculoskeletal injuries and non-traumatic disorders in Japan Self-Defense Forces.

Background: The epidemiological patterns of musculoskeletal injuries or disorders in military personnel have not been well documented and a better understanding is required for proper preventative measures and treatment. Here, we investigated musculoskeletal injuries or disorders among members of the Japan Self-Defense Forces.

Methods: All orthopedic patients (n = 22,340) who consulted to Japan Self-Defense Forces Hospitals were investigated for their type of injury or disorder, the injured body part, the mechanism, and the cause of injuries.

Topical Corticosteroid-Resolved Rubeosis Iridis with Neovascular Glaucoma Caused by Noninfectious Granulomatous Uveitis.

Purpose: We report a case of topical corticosteroid treatment-resolved rubeosis iridis with neovascular glaucoma (NVG) caused by noninfectious granulomatous uveitis.

Case Report: A 61-year-old woman with left ocular pain and blurred vision was referred to our department. Visual acuity and intraocular pressure (IOP) were 20/60 and 37 mm Hg in the left eye, respectively.

Assessment of diagnostic and therapeutic vitrectomy for vitreous opacity associated with uveitis with various etiologies.

Vitreous opacity (VO) is a common feature of intermediate uveitis, posterior uveitis, and panuveitis. Fundus observation is critical for determining the etiology of uveitis, however, is often interfered with VO. In these clinical settings, vitrectomy contributes to a correct diagnosis and guides alternative management strategies.

Bilateral idiopathic retinal vasculitis following coxsackievirus A4 infection: a case report.

Background: Coxsackieviruses are members of a group of viruses called the enteroviruses, which may cause respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms, erythema, meningoencephalitis, myocarditis, pericarditis, and myositis. Unilateral acute idiopathic maculopathy caused by coxsackievirus A16 has been associated with hand, foot, and mouth disease, but only a few reports describe retinitis associated with coxsackievirus serotype B3 or B4. We report a case of bilateral multifocal obstructive retinal vasculitis that developed after coxsackievirus A4 infection.

Independent effects of ADH1B and ALDH2 common dysfunctional variants on gout risk.

Gout is caused by hyperuricemia, with alcohol consumption being an established risk factor. Alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) are crucial enzymes for alcohol metabolism. We recently performed a genome-wide association study of gout and a subsequent fine-mapping study which identified rs671 of ALDH2 as a gout locus.

Association between aqueous humor and vitreous fluid levels of Th17 cell-related cytokines in patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy.

Inflammation is known to be involved in the progression of diabetic retinopathy. We have recently reported that vitreous levels of IL-4, IL-17A, IL-22, IL-31, and TNFα are higher than the respective serum levels in proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) patients, and that vitreous levels of these cytokines are higher in PDR than in other non-inflammatory vitreoretinal diseases or uveitis associated with sarcoidosis. In the present study, we investigated inflammatory cytokines including Th17 cell-related cytokines in aqueous humor samples obtained from eyes with PDR, and analyzed the association between the aqueous humor and vitreous fluid levels of individual cytokines.

Anti-VEGF therapy for central retinal vein occlusion caused by tuberculosis-associated uveitis: a case report.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB)-associated uveitis presents periphlebitis, occasionally causing central retinal vascular occlusion (CRVO). Intravitreal injection of ranibizumab (IVR) is an effective treatment for CRVO, which improves macular edema (ME) by reducing vascular permeability and prevents progression of retinal nonperfusion in CRVO. We report a case of CRVO due to TB-associated uveitis, which initially remitted by repeated IVR as an adjunct to anti-TB therapy and systemic corticosteroids, but subsequently led to severe vitreous hemorrhage (VH).

Association of High-Mobility Group Box-1 With Th Cell-Related Cytokines in the Vitreous of Ocular Sarcoidosis Patients.

Purpose: High-mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) is a nonhistone DNA-binding nuclear protein released from necrotic cells, which is also secreted by activated leukocytes and acts as a primary proinflammatory cytokine. In this study, we compared vitreous HMGB1 levels in ocular sarcoidosis with those in noninflammatory vitreoretinal diseases and evaluated its association with Th cell-related and proinflammatory cytokines.

Methods: The study group consisted of 24 patients with ocular sarcoidosis.

Renoprotective effects of a dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitor in a mouse model of progressive renal fibrosis.

Although the effects of dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) inhibitors beyond their hypoglycemic action have been reported, whether these inhibitors have renoprotective effects in nondiabetic chronic kidney disease (CKD) is unclear. We examined the therapeutic effects of DPP-4 inhibition in mice with unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO), a nondiabetic model of progressive renal fibrosis. After UUO surgery, mice were administered either the DPP-4 inhibitor alogliptin or a vehicle by oral gavage once a day for 10 days.

GWAS of clinically defined gout and subtypes identifies multiple susceptibility loci that include urate transporter genes.

Objective: A genome-wide association study (GWAS) of gout and its subtypes was performed to identify novel gout loci, including those that are subtype-specific.

Methods: Putative causal association signals from a GWAS of 945 clinically defined gout cases and 1213 controls from Japanese males were replicated with 1396 cases and 1268 controls using a custom chip of 1961 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). We also first conducted GWASs of gout subtypes.

Cationic Lipid Content in Liposome-Encapsulated Nisin Improves Sustainable Bactericidal Activity against Streptococcus mutans.

An oral infectious disease, dental caries, is caused by the cariogenic streptococci Streptococcus mutans. The expected preventive efficiency for prophylactics against dental caries is not yet completely observed. Nisin, a bacteriocin, has been demonstrated to be microbicidal against S.

The effects of URAT1/SLC22A12 nonfunctional variants, R90H and W258X, on serum uric acid levels and gout/hyperuricemia progression.

Urate transporter 1 (URAT1/SLC22A12), a urate transporter gene, is a causative gene for renal hypouricemia type 1. Among several reported nonsynonymous URAT1 variants, R90H (rs121907896) and W258X (rs121907892) are frequent causative mutations for renal hypouricemia. However, no case-control study has evaluated the relationship between gout and these two variants.

Evaluation of Efficacy and Safety of Latanoprost/Timolol versus Travoprost/Timolol Fixed Combinations for Ocular Hypertension Associated with Uveitis.

Purpose: To compare latanoprost/timolol (LT) versus travoprost/timolol (TT) fixed combinations for ocular hypertension (OHT) associated with uveitis.

Methods: Thirty-six patients (55 eyes) who were treated with LT (28 eyes) or TT (27 eyes) for OHT associated with uveitis were reviewed retrospectively. Intraocular pressure (IOP) and inflammation scores at the initiation of treatment and at the last visit during therapy were analyzed.

Reconstitution of disrupted photoreceptor layer in uveitis associated with Behçet's disease by infliximab treatment.

Background: Behçet's disease (BD)-associated uveitis causes retinal damage leading to severe visual disturbance. The early morphological changes in the retina are revealed by disappearance or disruption of the external limiting membrane (ELM), inner segment ellipsoid zone (EZ) and cone interdigitation zone (CIZ) in the outer retina shown on spectral domain-optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). However, it is unknown whether these changes in the retina are reversible in BD-associated uveitis.

Elevated Levels of Cytokines Associated with Th2 and Th17 Cells in Vitreous Fluid of Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy Patients.

Macrophages are involved in low-grade inflammation in diabetes, and play pathogenic roles in proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) by producing proinflammatory cytokines. T cells as well as other cells are also activated by proinflammatory cytokines, and infiltration into the vitreous of patients with PDR has been shown. In this study, we measured helper T (Th) cell-related cytokines in the vitreous of PDR patients to define the characteristics of Th-mediated immune responses associated with PDR.

Genome-wide association study of clinically defined gout identifies multiple risk loci and its association with clinical subtypes.

Objective: Gout, caused by hyperuricaemia, is a multifactorial disease. Although genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of gout have been reported, they included self-reported gout cases in which clinical information was insufficient. Therefore, the relationship between genetic variation and clinical subtypes of gout remains unclear.