MRI sequence focused on pancreatic morphology evaluation: three-shot turbo spin-echo with deep learning-based reconstruction.

BackgroundHigher-resolution magnetic resonance imaging sequences are needed for the early detection of pancreatic cancer.PurposeTo compare the quality of our novel T2-weighted, high-contrast, thin-slice imaging sequence, with an improved spatial resolution and deep learning-based reconstruction (three-shot turbo spin-echo with deep learning-based reconstruction [3S-TSE-DLR]), for imaging the pancreas with imaging using three conventional sequences (half-Fourier acquisition single-shot turbo spin-echo [HASTE], fat-suppressed 3D T1-weighted [FS-3D-T1W] imaging, and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography [MRCP]).Material and MethodsPancreatic images of 50 healthy volunteers acquired with 3S-TSE-DLR, HASTE, FS-3D-T1W imaging, and MRCP were compared by two diagnostic radiologists.

Bringing question notes to physicians: A nationwide cross-sectional study in Japan (INFORM study 2020).

Objective: To describe the behavior of bringing question notes to physicians in Japan and explore the factors associated with this behavior.

Methods: We used data from a nationwide cross-sectional study conducted in Japan on access to health information (INFORM Study 2020). Data from 3605 respondents, 3572 of whom did not miss the primary endpoint of bringing question notes to physicians, were analyzed.

Feasibility and Preliminary Evaluation of Implementation Strategies to Increase Individual Participation in an Internet-Based Stress Management Program for Micro- and Small-Sized Enterprises: A Pre-Post Pilot Study.

Objectives: This study evaluated the feasibility of strategies to improve participation rates in an Internet-based stress management program for micro- and small-sized enterprises.

Methods: A pre-post intervention study was conducted with companies (<50 employees). Stakeholder education preceded program implementation.

Evaluating the feasibility of a community-adapted multi-domain intervention for dementia prevention in older adults.

BackgroundDementia impacts individuals, families, and society, necessitating effective prevention strategies.ObjectiveTo evaluate the feasibility of a community-adapted multi-domain intervention for dementia prevention among older adults in Obu City, Japan and how uncertainties in implementing definitive trials can be reduced.MethodsA 12-month one-arm intervention trial was conducted with 80 community-dwelling older adults aged 65-86 years from two district regions.

Socioeconomic Status and Diabetes Prevalence in the Japanese: Insights From the JPHC-NEXT Study.

Objective: To assess the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and diabetes prevalence among a Japanese population with a wide age range, stratified by gender.

Patients And Methods: Socioeconomic, behavioral, and diabetes-related data (diagnosis or medication use based on self-report) were collected from 112,492 participants aged 40 to 74 years using self-administered questionnaires in a population-based study across seven regions in Japan from January 1, 2011, through December 31, 2016. Logistic regression analyses, stratified by gender, were performed to estimate the association between each SES (income, education, and occupation) and diabetes prevalence after adjusting for demographic status, family history of diabetes, health-related behaviors, and body mass index.

Complex Multimorbidity and Trajectories of Functional Disabilities in the Last Three Years of Life: A Prospective Cohort Study of Older Adults in Japan.

We sought to understand the impact of multimorbidity (MM) on the trajectories of functional decline in the last three years of life among older people in Japan. We used nationwide longitudinal cohort data with 6-year follow-up and analyzed 3731 functionally independent residents aged 65 years and older. The primary outcome was the five trajectory groups of functional disability in the last three years of life, defined by group-based trajectory modeling (GBTM).

Vascular Access Stenosis Caused by Membranous Structure in Patients on Hemodialysis.

Purpose: A membranous structure (MS) may be seen on ultrasound at a site of vascular access (VA) stenosis in patients on hemodialysis. It can also be encountered during percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) and be impassable from one side but easily passed from the other. This study aimed to examine the characteristics of MS cases and how to treat them.

Awareness, information sources, and beliefs regarding palliative care in the general population in Japan: a nationwide cross-sectional survey (INFORM study 2023).

Background: The diversification of information sources and changes in social structures necessitates updates on the state of public awareness of palliative care. Therefore, we clarified the status and determinants of awareness, information sources, and beliefs, regarding palliative care in Japan.

Methods: This nationwide cross-sectional survey included 10 000 participants aged ≥20 years enrolled through random sampling using a two-stage stratification in 2023.

Social participation and functional disability trajectories in the last three years of life: The Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study.

Background: Functional disability has various patterns from onset until death. Although social participation is a known protective factor against functional disability among older individuals, it is unclear whether social participation is associated with the trajectory patterns of functional disability prior to death. This study assessed the association between social participation, specifically in horizontal and vertical groups, and the trajectories of functional disability prior to death.

Patients' perceptions of patient-centered communication with healthcare providers and associated factors in Japan - The INFORM Study 2020.

Objective: To describe patients' perceptions of the patient-centeredness of their communication with healthcare providers in Japan, and to examine factors associated with these perceptions.

Methods: We analyzed the cross-sectional data from the INFORM Study 2020, which is a nationwide survey on health information access in Japan. A total of 3605 respondents completed the survey.

Associations of Individual Characteristics and Socioeconomic Status With Heated Tobacco Product Harmfulness Perceptions in Japan: A Nationwide Cross-sectional Study (INFORM Study 2020).

Background: In Japan, heated tobacco products (HTPs) are promoted by the tobacco industry as reduced-risk tobacco products despite the lack of evidence for this claim. This study determined the distribution of HTP-harmfulness perception and identified the explanatory factors associated with the perception of HTP as less harmful than conventional cigarettes.

Methods: A nationwide cross-sectional survey was conducted with Japanese people aged 20 years or older (INFORM Study 2020) using a self-administered questionnaire.

Trust in Mass Media as Sources of Cancer Information: Findings from a Nationally Representative Cross-Sectional Survey in Japan.

Trust is a major factor in effective public dissemination and use of relevant health information to guide important health decisions. To examine mass media as a communication channel for delivering cancer information among Japanese adults, we identified the level of trust in various types of mass media as sources of cancer information, and examined factors associated with trust, including exposure to mass media, sociodemographic factors, and cancer history. Data were analyzed for 3,109 Japanese adults who responded to a nationally representative cross-sectional mail survey.

Smoking cessation interventions and implementations across multiple settings in Japan: a scoping review and supplemental survey.

Background: Smoking is the leading risk factor for death worldwide. In Japan, although several evidence-based interventions (EBIs) for smoking cessation have been disseminated or adopted, there is a gap between scientific evidence and the actual implementation. This scoping review aimed to describe the knowledge gaps in local-level smoking cessation interventions in Japan, their implementation outcomes, implementation barriers and facilitators, and the use of implementation strategies.

Barriers and facilitators to implementing geriatric assessment in daily oncology practice in Japan: A qualitative study using an implementation framework.

Introduction: Various guidelines recommend geriatric assessment (GA) for older adults with cancer, but it is not widely implemented in daily practice. This study uses an implementation framework to comprehensively and systematically identify multi-level barriers and facilitators to implementing GA in daily oncology practice.

Materials And Methods: We conducted 16 semi-structured interviews with healthcare providers in 10 designated cancer hospitals in Japan, using purposive and convenience sampling.

Cancer treatment-related financial toxicity in Japan: a scoping review.

Financial toxicity during cancer survival has been studied mainly in the United States; 47-49% of cancer survivors reported financial hardships and 12-63% reported debt owing to treatment costs. Financial toxicity is influenced by each country's economic status and healthcare system. We aimed to review the evidence on financial toxicity in Japan.

Interactive assistance via eHealth for small- and medium-sized enterprises' employer and health care manager teams on tobacco control (eSMART-TC): protocol for a cluster randomized hybrid type II trial (N-EQUITY2101/J-SUPPORT2102).

Background: Tobacco control should be a higher public health priority in Japan. Some workplaces provide smoking cessation support and connect employees to effective smoking cessation treatments such as outpatient clinics. However, tobacco control measures have not been sufficiently implemented in Japan, especially in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), where resources are limited.

Effect modification by geographic area on the association between health literacy and self-rated health: a nationwide cross-sectional study in Japan.

Background: Health literacy (HL) has gained increasing attention as a factor related to health behaviors and outcomes. This study aimed to investigate geographic differences in HL levels and effect modification by geographic area on their relationship with self-rated health in the Japanese population using a nationwide sample.

Methods: Data for this study were derived from a nationally representative cross-sectional survey on health information access for consumers in Japan using a mailed self-administered questionnaire in 2020 (INFORM Study 2020).

Screening practices of cancer survivors and individuals whose family or friends had a cancer diagnoses-a nationally representative cross-sectional survey in Japan (INFORM Study 2020).

Purpose: We examined cancer screening practices and related beliefs in cancer survivors and individuals with family or close friends with a cancer diagnosis compared to individuals without the above cancer history for 5 population-based (gastric, colorectal, lung, breast, cervical) and 1 opportunistic (prostate) cancer screenings using nationally representative cross-sectional survey in Japan.

Methods: We analyzed 3269 data from 3605 respondents (response rate, 37.1%) and compared the screening beliefs and practices of cancer survivors (n = 391), individuals with family members (n = 1674), and close friends with a cancer diagnosis (n = 685) to those without any cancer history (n = 519).

Chronic Diseases and Sociodemographic Characteristics Associated With Online Health Information Seeking and Using Social Networking Sites: Nationally Representative Cross-sectional Survey in Japan.

Background: In an aging society, worsening chronic diseases increase the burden on patients and the health care system. Using online health information including health information via social networking sites (SNSs), such as Facebook and YouTube, may play an important role in the self-management of chronic diseases and health promotion for internet users.

Objective: This study aims to improve strategies for promoting access to reliable information for the self-management of chronic diseases via the internet, and to identify populations facing barriers to using the internet for health, we examined chronic diseases and characteristics associated with online health information seeking and the use of SNSs.

Smoking cessation interventions and implementations in Japan: a study protocol for a scoping review and supplemental survey.

Introduction: Despite various tobacco control measures in Japan, smoking remains a leading cause of mortality. This manuscript outlines proposed methodology for scoping review that aims to describe the knowledge gaps for local-level smoking cessation interventions in Japan, their implementation barriers and facilitators, and the use of implementation strategies.

Methods And Analysis: A scoping review will be conducted using the updated guidelines of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses-extension for Scoping Reviews to systematically search peer-reviewed journal articles and grey literature to identify studies on smoking cessation interventions in Japan.