High Parity Is an Independent Risk Factor for Tooth Loss in Women: A Community-Based Takahata Study in Japan.

Risk factors for tooth loss have been widely examined previously. However, no previous study has comprehensively investigated the risk factors, including lifestyle-related specific factors (parity, oral health habits, and socioeconomic status), for fewer than 20 teeth among women in the general population in Japan. This cross-sectional study explored the association of these risk factors, especially parity, with having fewer than 20 teeth among Japanese women.

Association between presence of 20 or more natural teeth and all-cause, cancer-related, and cardiovascular disease-related mortality: Yamagata (Takahata) prospective observational study.

Background: Several studies have surveyed the relationship between the presence of ≥ 20 natural teeth and mortality. However, very few have evaluated this association over a long-term follow-up of more than ten years within a large population in Japan. This study aimed to prospectively confirm the associations between mortality and the presence of ≥ 20 natural teeth within a community-based population in Japan.

Development of a precise quantitative method for monitoring sirolimus in whole blood using LC/ESI-MS/MS.

Sirolimus is used on patients after solid organ transplantation and on lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM) patients, and therapeutic drug monitoring is required in clinical practice. We have previously reported an accurate method for quantitative determination of sirolimus, but its sample preparation step was complicated. In this study, we developed a modified liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS/MS) method for sirolimus quantification.

Comparison of the effects of radiotherapy doses of 50.4 Gy and 60 Gy on outcomes of chemoradiotherapy for thoracic esophageal cancer: subgroup analysis based on the Comprehensive Registry of Esophageal Cancer in Japan from 2009 to 2011 by the Japan Esophageal Society.

Background: In definitive chemoradiotherapy (CRTx) for esophageal cancer, a radiotherapy (RT) dose of 50.4 Gy in 28 fractions has been the standard in many countries, while 60 Gy in 30 fractions has been frequently used in Japan. To clarify the optimal RT dose in CRTx for esophageal cancer, we compared clinical outcomes with the two doses using data from the Comprehensive Registry of Esophageal Cancer in Japan by the Japan Esophageal Society (JES).

Efficiency score from data envelopment analysis can predict the future onset of hypertension and dyslipidemia: A cohort study.

Primary prevention focuses on ensuring that healthy people remain healthy. As it is practically difficult to provide intervention for an entire healthy population, it is essential to identify and target the at risk of risks population. We aimed to distinguish at risk of risks population using data envelopment analysis (DEA).

Involvement of H-gradient dependent transporter in PGE release from A549 cells.

The purpose of this study was to identify the transporter involved in the release of prostaglandin E (PGE). In the present study, transport assays were conducted using membrane vesicles prepared from human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells, thus enabling identification of the novel exporter present in A549 cells. PGE transport into A549 vesicles was higher in the presence of a proton (H)-gradient, thus suggesting the involvement of PGEH symporter in PGE transport.

Association Between Pancreatic Cystic Lesions and High-grade Intraepithelial Neoplasia and Aging: An Autopsy Study.

Objectives: This study aimed to clarify clinicopathological features of pancreatic cysts.

Methods: Pancreata from 280 autopsies (median, 83 years; male, 146; female, 134) were sectioned every 5 mm. Cysts (<10 mm) were diagnosed as a simple cyst or low-grade, intermediate-grade, or high-grade dysplasia.

Pure topographical disorientation in novel environments without anterograde amnesia: a case study.

Topographical disorientation (TD) in novel environments is considered to be a part of anterograde amnesia. A 56-year-old woman presented with pure TD only in novel environments following limbic encephalitis. She could not remember directions inside the hospital on weekly outpatient visits; however, her verbal and visual anterograde memories were normal.

Age at First Birth and the Risk of Endometrial Cancer Incidence: A Pooled Analysis of Two Prospective Cohort Studies among Japanese Women.

Age at first birth has been increasing among women in developed countries. Meanwhile, endometrial cancer has also been increasing worldwide, being one of the most common female hormone-related cancers. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between age at first birth and the risk of endometrial cancer among Japanese women, and to examine the hypothesis that the recent increase in endometrial cancer incidence can be partly explained by the trend for increasing age at first birth.

Fewer teeth are a risk factor for being underweight in community-dwelling Japanese aged 40 years and older: The Yamagata (Takahata) Study.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate comprehensively, the risk factors for underweight in cross-sectional study in the general population of Japan.

Methods: The survey population was the general population of individuals aged >40 years in Takahata town, Japan in 2005. A postal survey in the form of a self-administered questionnaire was distributed, and 6084 individuals were entered into the final statistical analysis.

Visual texture agnosia in dementia with Lewy bodies and Alzheimer's disease.

Background: Neuroimaging and some clinical studies have reported that the ventral visual pathway is relevant for visual texture recognition. Although a variety of visual deficits have been reported in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), visual material identification and texture recognition have not been thoroughly examined.

Objectives: To investigate visual texture recognition in patients with AD and DLB and to clarify the relationship between visual texture recognition and various visuoperceptual functions.

JCOG0911 INTEGRA study: a randomized screening phase II trial of interferonβ plus temozolomide in comparison with temozolomide alone for newly diagnosed glioblastoma.

Purpose: This study explored the superiority of temozolomide (TMZ) + interferonβ (IFNβ) to standard TMZ as treatment for newly diagnosed glioblastoma (GBM) via randomized phase II screening design.

Experimental Design: Eligibility criteria included histologically proven GBM, with 50% of the tumor located in supratentorial areas, without involvement of the optic, olfactory nerves, and pituitary gland and without multiple lesions and dissemination. Patients in the TMZ + radiotherapy (RT) arm received RT (2.

Clinical Features of Precocious, Synchronous, and Metachronous Brain Metastases and the Role of Tumor Resection.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to clarify clinical features, outcomes, and the role of tumor resection in precocious, synchronous, and metachronous brain metastases.

Methods: Brain metastases were found before primary cancer detection in the precocious group, within 2 months after primary cancer detection in the synchronous group, and 2 months or later after primary cancer detection in the metachronous group.

Results: Of 471 patients with brain metastases, 93 (20%) were included in the precocious group, 76 (16%) in the synchronous group, and 302 (64%) in the metachronous group.

Cost-effectiveness comparison between neoadjuvant chemohormonal therapy and extended pelvic lymph node dissection in high-risk prostate cancer patients treated with radical prostatectomy: a multi-institutional analysis.

The aim of the present study was to assess the cost-effectiveness of extended pelvic lymph node dissection (ePLND) compared to neoadjuvant chemohormonal therapy using gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist/antagonist and estramustine. We retrospectively analyzed data within Michinoku Urological Cancer Study Group database containing 2971 PC patients treated with radical prostatectomy (RP) at four institutes between July 1996 and July 2017. We identified 237 and 403 high-risk patients who underwent RP and ePLND (ePLND group), and neoadjuvant chemohormonal therapy followed by RP and limited PLND (neoadjuvant group), respectively.

Significance of Serum N-glycan Profiling as a Diagnostic Biomarker in Urothelial Carcinoma.

Background: The clinical diagnosis of urothelial carcinoma (UC) relies on invasive methods in patients with hematuria. Although more sensitive and noninvasive screening methods are required, a specific serum biomarker for UC is lacking.

Objective: To examine whether serum glycan-based biomarkers can be applied to UC detection.

Evaluating retinal vessel diameter with optical coherence tomography in normal-tension glaucoma patients.

Purpose: To investigate a novel optical coherence tomography (OCT)-derived variable, circumpapillary mean retinal shadow width (cpMRSW), and to elucidate its association with normal-tension glaucoma (NTG).

Methods: For the purpose of validation, we measured retinal vascular calibers in 68 arterioles and 100 venules of 12 NTG patients and 12 healthy subjects and compared the width of the visible retinal shadows in spectral-domain OCT images and the caliber of retinal vessels in retinal photographs. Then we calculated cpMRSW in 78 NTG eyes and 25 age-matched healthy control eyes.

Effect of genomics-related literacy on non-communicable diseases.

Recent progress in genomic research has raised expectations for the development of personalized preventive medicine, although genomics-related literacy of patients will be essential. Thus, enhancing genomics-related literacy is crucial, particularly for individuals with low genomics-related literacy because they might otherwise miss the opportunity to receive personalized preventive care. This should be especially emphasized when a lack of genomics-related literacy is associated with elevated disease risk, because patients could therefore be deprived of the added benefits of preventive interventions; however, whether such an association exists is unclear.

Clinical usefulness of the dilute Russell viper venom time test for patients taking warfarin.

Warfarin use often causes false-positive results in the dilute Russell viper venom time test (DRVVT). Thus, three sets of guidelines-those presented by the International Society on Haemostasis and Thrombosis (ISTH), the British Committee for Standards in Haematology (BCSH), and the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI)-are advocated. We evaluated the clinical usefulness of the testing methods recommended in these three guidelines using laboratory samples.

Clinical implications of serum N-glycan profiling as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in germ-cell tumors.

Serum biomarker monitoring is essential for management of germ-cell tumors (GCT). However, not all GCT are positive for conventional tumor markers. We examined whether serum N-glycan-based biomarkers can be applied for detection and prognosis in patients with GCT.

Evaluation of the safety and efficacy of recombinant soluble thrombomodulin for patients with disseminated intravascular coagulation associated with acute leukemia: multicenter prospective study by the Tohoku Hematology Forum.

It has been suggested that use of recombinant soluble thrombomodulin (rTM) is superior to conventional drugs in treatment of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) complicating acute leukemia. However, its safety and efficacy have not been fully examined in prospective studies. Here, we performed a multicenter prospective study to examine outcomes of rTM treatment for DIC in patients with acute leukemia.

The association between skin autofluorescence and mean deviation in patients with open-angle glaucoma.

Background: It has been suggested that local and systemic oxidative stress levels are causal risk factors for glaucoma.

Aim: To evaluate the effect of age on the role of systemic oxidative stress in open-angle glaucoma (OAG).

Methods: This study included 502 eyes of 251 Japanese patients with OAG.

High Serum Adiponectin Level Is a Risk Factor for Anemia in Japanese Men: A Prospective Observational Study of 1,029 Japanese Subjects.

Erythroid abnormalities including anemia and polycythemia are often observed in the general clinical setting. Because recent studies reported that adiponectin negatively affects hematopoiesis, we performed a prospective observational study to assess the relationship between anemia and adiponectin, as well as other parameters, in 1029 Japanese subjects (477 men and 552 women) 40 years of age and older. Body measurements, blood tests, and nutrition intake studies were performed at baseline, and 5 to 7 years later (follow-up).

Meteorological factors affecting scrub typhus occurrence: a retrospective study of Yamagata Prefecture, Japan, 1984-2014.

Climate change, by its influence on the ecology of vectors might affect the occurrence of vector-borne diseases. This study examines the effects of meteorological factors in Japan on the occurrence of scrub typhus, a mite-borne zoonosis caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi. Using negative binomial regression, we analysed the relationships between meteorological factors (including temperature, rainfall, snowfall) and spring-early summer cases of scrub typhus in Yamagata Prefecture, Japan, during 1984-2014.