Taiso practice and risk of functional disability and dementia among older adults in Japan: The JAGES cohort study.

Background: Taiso is a Japanese term encompassing meanings akin to calisthenics. Taiso is a widely used exercise program in Japan but whether it prevents functional disability and dementia remains unclear. This study aimed to elucidate the association between practicing Taiso, especially focusing on the well-known Radio-Taiso, and functional disability and dementia in older adults in Japan.

Proximity to public transportation and incidence of depression risk among older adults: A three-year longitudinal analysis from the Japan Gerontological evaluation study.

Objective: Depression in older adults has been associated with environmental factors, such as green spaces and walkable neighborhoods; however, evidence on the relationship between proximity to public transportation and mental health is scarce. This multi-municipality longitudinal study examined the association between proximity to public transportation and risk of depression among older adults and considered car usage.

Methods: We analyzed data from 4947 functionally independent adults, aged 65 years and older who resided in 25 municipalities across Japan.

Association of Indoor Environment with the Intention to Enter Nursing Homes among Older Adults with Functional Limitations in Japan.

Objectives: The indoor environment refers to the conditions within a building, including thermal comfort, air quality, lighting, and noise levels. However, the association between the indoor environment and the intention to enter nursing homes among older adults with functional limitations remains unclear. Therefore, this study examined the association of indoor environmental factors with intention to enter nursing homes within this population.

Development of the Japanese Anticholinergic Risk Scale: English translation of the Japanese article.

Background: Anticholinergic burden, reflecting the cumulative impact of medications with anticholinergic properties, significantly predicts adverse drug reactions and geriatric syndromes in older adults. Although anticholinergic risk scales (ARS) have been developed and validated in various countries, none have been tailored specifically for Japan. The Japanese Anticholinergic Risk Scale (JARS) was developed to adapt the existing ARS frameworks to the Japanese context, considering unique medication profiles and cultural factors.

Statement on medication simplification in long-term care facilities by the Japanese Society of Geriatric Pharmacy: English translation of the Japanese article.

Many older adults who are certified for long-term care services live or stay in long-term care facilities (LTCFs), where they receive medical and nursing care. These individuals often encounter medication-related problems, such as polypharmacy and complex medication regimens, including frequent administration schedules. Although considerable attention has been paid to polypharmacy in the context of optimizing medication use in older adults, little emphasis has been placed on simplifying these regimens.

Changes in Municipal-Level Social Capital and Socioeconomic Inequalities in Sports Group Participation and Walking Time Among Older Adults.

Background: This study aimed to examine trends in socioeconomic inequalities in sports group participation and daily walking time among older adults in Japan from 2016 to 2019, and to elucidate the association of municipal-level social capital in these trends.

Methods: Using data from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study across 2 waves (2016 and 2019), this repeated cross-sectional ecological study included 50 municipalities with 102,575 and 94,022 participants, respectively. We investigated inequalities in sports group participation, and daily walking time by income and education, using the slope index of inequality and relative index of inequality with municipal-level social capital variables, such as civic participation, reciprocity, social cohesion, and social network.

Promoting Social Participation in the Primary Care Field: An Ecological Study on the Potential Reduction of Multimorbidity Prevalence.

Background: No municipal-level study has elucidated the social determinants associated with multimorbidity prevalence (MP).

Objective: This article aimed to determine the differences in MP among municipalities and investigate factors associated with such differences through an ecological study of data obtained from a nationwide survey. This article focused on social participation and household income, which are associated with single chronic diseases, such as hypertension.

Serviced Housing for Older People and Prevention of Functional Decline: A One-year Follow-up Study in Japan.

Serviced Housing for Older People (SHOP) is a community-based housing model in Japan that provides barrier-free apartments and support services for residents. Whether the SHOP model has positive effects on residents' health remains unclear. This follow-up study examines the association between living in SHOPs and functional decline.

Housing Adaptations and Long-Term Care Facility Admissions among Older Adults with Care Needs in Japan.

Objectives: Housing adaptations may contribute to aging in place for older adults with care needs by reducing the risk of long-term care facility (LTCF) admissions, but this association remains unclear. We examined the association between housing adaptations and LTCF admissions among older adults with care needs.

Design: Retrospective cohort study using data from a Japanese municipality.

Polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate medications in older adults who use long-term care services: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Older adults requiring care often have multiple morbidities that lead to polypharmacy, including the use of potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs), leading to increased medical costs and adverse drug effects. We conducted a cross-sectional study to clarify the actual state of drug prescriptions and the background of polypharmacy and PIMs.

Methods: Using long-term care (LTC) and medical insurance claims data in the Ibaraki Prefecture from April 2018 to March 2019, we included individuals aged ≥ 65 who used LTC services.

Characteristics to consider for home pharmaceutical care for older adults who initiate visiting pharmacist services in Japan.

This study aimed to clarify patient characteristics regarding medication-taking behaviors, their understanding of medication instructions and specific medication management for older adults who initiated visiting pharmacist services. By analyzing long-term care certification data, participants using visiting pharmacist services required more medication-taking support and had a poorer understanding of daily schedules.

Arts and cultural engagement and subsequent social deficits among older adults: A three-year longitudinal study using the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study.

Arts and cultural engagement has the potential to reduce social deficits such as loneliness and social isolation. However, as most evidence is from Western countries, less is known whether the protective association of engagement with social deficits can also be seen in different cultural settings such as Asia. We explored the associations of arts and cultural engagement, focusing on engagement continuity and type, with loneliness and social isolation among older adults in Japan, one of the fastest-ageing countries.

Regional Variation in End-of-life Care Just Before Death Among the Oldest Old in Japan: A Descriptive Study.

Background: The use of life-sustaining treatment (LST) in the final stage of life is a major policy concern due to increased costs, while its intensity does not correlate with quality. Previous reports have shown declining trends in LST use in Japan. However, regional practice variations remain unclear.

Deprescribing Opportunities for Frail Residents of Nursing Homes: A Multicenter Study in Australia, China, Japan, and Spain.

Objective: Deprescribing opportunities may differ across health care systems, nursing home settings, and prescribing cultures. The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence of STOPPFrail medications according to frailty status among residents of nursing homes in Australia, China, Japan, and Spain.

Design: Secondary cross-sectional analyses of data from 4 cohort studies.

A mixed-methods study on the pharmacological management of pain in Australian and Japanese nursing homes.

Background: Understanding how analgesics are used in different countries can inform initiatives to improve the pharmacological management of pain in nursing homes.

Aims: To compare patterns of analgesic use among Australian and Japanese nursing home residents; and explore Australian and Japanese healthcare professionals' perspectives on analgesic use.

Methods: Part one involved a cross-sectional comparison among residents from 12 nursing homes in South Australia (N = 550) in 2019 and four nursing homes in Tokyo (N = 333) in 2020.

Factors associated with the introduction of visiting-pharmacist services in older adults in Japan: A nested case-control study.

Aim: To investigate the factors associated with introducing visiting-pharmacist services for community-dwelling older adults in Japan.

Methods: We conducted a nested case-control study using claims data in a cohort from a city in Tokyo. Patients aged ≥65 years who received visiting-pharmacist services for the first time between April 2014 and March 2020 were considered case patients.

Literature Review of Studies Using the National Database of the Health Insurance Claims of Japan (NDB): Limitations and Strategies in Using the NDB for Research.

The use of the National Database of Health Insurance Claims and Specific Health Checkups of Japan (NDB) for research has increased over time. Researchers need to understand the characteristics of the data to generate quality-assured evidence from the NDB. In this review, we mapped and characterized the limitations and related strategies using the NDB for research based on the descriptions of published NDB studies.

Analyzing Patient-Sharing Network Using an Administrative Claim Database in Japan.

We analyzed the behavior of patient with a focus on patient-sharing based on the methodology of network analysis. We used an administrative healthcare claims database from September of the years 2008-2020 to identify shared patients with hypertension. The patients' behavior of visiting multiple medical facilities was extracted as graphical data, and we calculated density and centrality as indicators to evaluate the structure of the patient sharing network.