The Clinical Variables Predicting the Acquisition of Independent Ambulation in the Acute Phase of Stroke: A Retrospective Study.

Background: Predictive factors associated with independent ambulation post-stroke are less commonly reported for patients during the acute phase of stroke. This study aimed to identify the clinical variables predicting ambulation independence in the acute phase of stroke and test the superiority of their prediction accuracy.

Methods: Sixty-nine patients, hospitalized in the acute phase for an initial unilateral, supratentorial stroke lesion, were divided into independent ( = 24) and dependent ambulation ( = 45) groups, with functional ambulation category scores of 4-5 and ≤ 3, respectively.

Association of body mass index and weight change with death in patients with advanced cancer.

Objective: Conventional diagnostic criteria for cachexia are based on Western studies. The aim of this study was to investigate trends in body mass index (BMI) and the rate of weight change associated with adverse outcomes in Asian patients with advanced cancer.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study was conducted using the administrative claims database compiled by the Japan Medical Data Center Inc.

Body mass index and weight change are associated with mortality in chronic kidney disease: A retrospective cohort study using a Japanese medical claims database.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate body mass index (BMI) and rate of weight change associated with adverse outcomes in Asian patients with chronic kidney disease.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed between April 2014 and June 2022 using the administrative claims database compiled by the Japan Medical Data Center. Patients were defined as individuals with comorbidities with chronic kidney disease stages 3 to 5 on admission and were aged ≥40 y with BMI at admission and BMI information from a previous admission 3 to 12 mo earlier.

Diagnosis and prevalence of sarcopenic obesity in patients with colorectal cancer: A scoping review.

Background & Aims: Sarcopenic obesity (SO) is associated with worse outcomes in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC); however, the diagnostic methods and prevalence of SO vary among studies. Therefore, we conducted this scoping review to investigate the diagnosis of SO in CRC, identify the associated problems, and determine its prevalence.

Methods: A systematic review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews reporting guidelines.

Timing of Initiation of Acute Stroke Rehabilitation and Management Corresponding to Complications at Primary Stroke Centers in Japan: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Web-Based Questionnaire Survey.

Introduction: Many guidelines now recommend early rehabilitation for acute stroke patients. However, evidence remains lacking regarding the specific timings for initiation of various rehabilitation steps and management when complications are encountered in acute stroke rehabilitation. This survey aimed to investigate actual clinical situations in acute stroke rehabilitation in Japan and to improve the medical systems for rehabilitation and plan further studies.

ICU-Acquired Weakness Complicated With Bilateral Foot Drop After Severe COVID-19: Successful Rehabilitation Approach and Long-Term Follow-Up.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is associated with muscle and nerve injuries as a consequence of prolonged critical illness. We report here a case of intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICU-AW) with bilateral peroneal nerve palsy after COVID-19. A 54-year-old male with COVID-19 was transferred to our hospital.

Brain regions associated with Brunnstrom and functional independence measure scores in patients after a stroke: a tract-based spatial statistics study.

[Purpose] We aimed to assess diffusion tensor fractional anisotropy to outline the brain regions associated with the long-term motor and cognitive functional outcomes of patients with stroke. [Participants and Methods] Eighty patients from our previous study were enrolled. Fractional anisotropy maps were acquired on days 14-21 after stroke onset, and tract-based spatial statistics were applied.

Applicability of automated tractography during acute care stroke rehabilitation.

[Purpose] To assess the clinical applicability of a novel automated tractography tool named XTRACT during acute stroke rehabilitation. [Participants and Methods] Three patients with left hemisphere stroke were sampled. Diffusion tensor images were acquired on the second week, and automated tractography was then applied.

Nutritional counseling for patients with incurable cancer: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background & Aims: This systematic review aims to determine whether nutritional counseling by registered dietitians and/or nutritional specialists is recommended for adult patients with incurable advanced or recurrent cancer who are refractory to or intolerant of anticancer therapy.

Methods: This systematic review analyzed randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of nutritional counseling in cancer patients older than 18 years, primarily those with stage 4 cancer. Nutrition counseling was performed by registered dietitians and/or nutritional specialists using any method, including group sessions, telephone consultations, written materials, and web-based approaches.

Trajectories of the Prevalence of Sarcopenia in the Pre- and Post-Stroke Periods: A Systematic Review.

Interventions for stroke-related sarcopenia in patients with stroke are needed, but the details of the target population are unclear. This systematic review aimed to identify trajectories of the prevalence of sarcopenia in the pre- and post-stroke periods and to determine the diagnostic criteria used in patients with stroke. We searched for literature in six databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, CINAHL, and Ichushi-web (in Japanese).

Prognostic implications of the global leadership initiative on malnutrition criteria as a routine assessment modality for malnutrition in hospitalized patients at a university hospital.

Background & Aims: Few studies have examined the association between mortality and malnutrition diagnosed using the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria for routine nutritional assessment; thus, this association is not well known. We aimed to clarify the association between GLIM-defined malnutrition and mortality in a large population of hospitalized patients.

Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we enrolled adult patients admitted to Aichi Medical University Hospital between April 2019 and March 2021, who underwent nutritional assessment using the GLIM criteria.

Predictive Value of Temporal Muscle Thickness for Sarcopenia after Acute Stroke in Older Patients.

The assessment of sarcopenia is part of the nutritional assessment index and is essential in stroke management. This study aimed to identify and validate cutoff values of temporal muscle thickness (TMT) measured using computed tomography to identify sarcopenia after acute stroke. The participants were patients with stroke aged ≥65 years who were admitted to rehabilitation units.

Cachexia staging score predicts survival in patients with cancer who receive palliative care.

Objective: The aim of this study was to validate the cachexia staging score (CSS), a multidimensional, item-based diagnostic method of cachexia severity, for patients with advanced cancer receiving palliative care.

Methods: Eligible patients were those with cancer who received palliative care during hospitalization between May 2019 and April 2020. All data were collected retrospectively from medical records.

Prevalence of sarcopenic obesity based on newly proposed diagnostic criteria and functional outcomes in older adults undergoing rehabilitation.

In 2022, the European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN) and European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO) working group proposed uniform diagnostic criteria for sarcopenic obesity. However, no study has adapted these criteria to an Asian population or examined sarcopenic obesity prevalence diagnosed using these criteria or its association with functional outcomes. This retrospective cohort study investigated sarcopenic obesity prevalence diagnosed based on the ESPEN and EASO criteria, and its association with functional outcomes in 1080 older Japanese patients (mean age 79.

Diet-induced inflammation is associated with sarcopenia and muscle strength in older adults who visit a frailty clinic.

Background: Diet-induced inflammation may be associated with sarcopenia; however, few reports have examined this relationship.

Aim: To examine the association between the dietary inflammatory index (DII) and sarcopenia in older adults who visited a frailty clinic in Japan.

Methods: This cross-sectional study used outpatient data from the Frailty Registry Study.

Effect of tongue strength on clinical outcomes of patients: A systematic review.

Objectives: Whether decreased tongue strength is associated with poor clinical outcomes is unclear. This systematic review investigated the effect of decreased tongue strength on the clinical outcomes of adults requiring medical treatment.

Design: Systematic review.

Weight and Abdominal Pressure-Induced Shunt Trouble in Patients With Shunted Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus: A Comprehensive Study on Pressure Environment of Shunt System.

Objectives: We identified a new type of shunt malfunction (SM) in patients with normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH). It is induced by weight change and can be treated with valve readjustment. There were two types of SM as follows: Underdrainage induced by the weight gain and overdrainage induced by the weight loss.

Relationship between the independence level of individual motor-related functional independence measure items and its total score in patients after hip fracture: an ordinal logistic modelling study.

[Purpose] The independence level of activities of daily living during the recovery period should be predicted to plan a rehabilitation program. This study aimed to assess the relationship between the independence levels of individual motor-related Functional Independence Measure (FIM-motor) items and total FIM-motor score in patients after hip fracture. [Participants and Methods] This study retrospectively analyzed 40 patients who had stayed in a convalescent rehabilitation hospital after hip fracture.

Rehabilitation Management for a Patient with Bilateral Pneumothorax after Surgery for Esophageal Cancer.

Background: Esophageal cancer is increasing in incidence in Japan and is usually treated by radical surgery. However, pulmonary complications are a major cause of perioperative mortality. Here we report a case in which bilateral pneumothorax after thoracoscopic esophagectomy was managed successfully by a combination of chest physiotherapy, mobilization, and delayed oral intake.

Association between food texture levels consumed and the prevalence of malnutrition and sarcopenia in older patients after stroke.

Background/objectives: Texture-modified diets (TMDs) may affect nutritional status and sarcopenia in patients after stroke. This study aimed to investigate the association of food texture levels consumed by patients after stroke with the prevalence of malnutrition and sarcopenia.

Subjects/methods: This was a two-center cross-sectional study.

Prosthetic walking after bilateral transfemoral amputation in a patient with dilated cardiomyopathy: a case report.

In this study, we present a case of a 14-year-old adolescent boy who developed rhabdomyolysis and underwent bilateral transfemoral amputation after cardiopulmonary resuscitation for cardiac arrest because of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Patients with bilateral transfemoral amputation have slower walking velocity and greater oxygen consumption during walking. Rehabilitation of such patients may be demanding especially if they have DCM, one of the major causes of advanced heart failure.

Joint preserving procedures for painful plantar callosities in patients with flexible cavovarus foot.

Background: The outcome of a constant joint preserving procedure for painful plantar callosities with cavovarus foot remains unclear.

Methods: Eleven patients (11 feet) who underwent lateral displacement calcaneal osteotomy (LDCO), dorsiflexion first metatarsal osteotomy (DFMO), and plantar fasciotomy (PF), simultaneously were included. The presence of painful callosities, heel alignment of standing (HA), and the Japanese Society for Surgery of the Foot ankle/hindfoot (JSSF) score were evaluated.

Goal setting for nutrition and body weight in rehabilitation nutrition: position paper by the Japanese Association of Rehabilitation Nutrition (secondary publication).

The most important nutrition goals in rehabilitation nutrition are improving function and quality of life, and they are useful to set body weight goals to further improve these aspects. In this paper, we clarified our position, as the Japanese Association of Rehabilitation Nutrition, on body weight goal setting. Body weight goals should be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic/Relevant, and Timed).