Anthropometric Indices for Predicting Incident Cardiovascular Disease : A 13-Year Follow-Up Study in a Japanese population.

Background: No previous study has compared the predictive capacity of various anthropometric indices of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in East Asians.

Objective: This study aimed to compare which anthropometric indices have greater impact on CVD in the Japanese population.

Methods: Data from a health checkup program conducted by the Panasonic Corporation between 2008 and 2021, including 160,656 participants, were analyzed.

The combined effects of motor imagery and motor practice are influenced by differences in working memory function: Examination of brain, spinal cord, and muscle performance data.

The ability to perform motor imagery is affected by differences in short-term memory storage capacity in terms of the activation of working memory. Therefore, from the viewpoint of the simultaneous measurement of brain activation and spinal motor neuron excitability, we examined differences in the combined effects of motor practice and motor imagery due to differences in working memory function. 20 healthy individuals were classified into Normal (score of ≤5-6 digits) and Good (score of ≥7 digits) groups based on working memory in a digit span test.

Time for a change? Threshold for obesity in contemporary Japanese population.

Background: The obesity criteria for Japanese population are defined based on a cross-sectional study conducted 30 years ago. We aimed to examine the validity of a BMI of 25 kg/m as a determinant of obesity in the Japanese population by assessing the association between BMI and the lifestyle-related diseases in a large and long-term cohort.

Methods: This cohort study included 162,136 individuals aged ≥40 years who participated in a medical health checkup program at Panasonic Corporation covering 166 operational sites from 2008 to 2023.

Rechallenge of immune checkpoint inhibitor after local therapy for immune checkpoint inhibitor-resistant non-small cell lung cancer.

Background: The introduction of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has enabled long-term survival for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. However, the proportion of patients achieving this is still low compared to patients with melanoma. Many NSCLC patients experience early progression (primary resistance) following ICI treatment, or relapse after initial responses (acquired resistance).

Impact of metabolic phenotype changes on the development of chronic kidney disease: Panasonic cohort study 17.

Objective: This study investigated how changes in metabolic phenotype, defined by obesity and metabolic health, impact chronic kidney disease (CKD) development in a large cohort.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study analyzed health data collected between 2011 and 2021 from 84,729 Panasonic Holdings Corporation (formerly Panasonic Corporation) employees aged ≥40 years. Metabolic phenotypes were classified as metabolically healthy with no obesity (MHNO), metabolically healthy with obesity (MHO), metabolic abnormalities with no obesity (MANO), and metabolic abnormalities with obesity (MAO).

The impact of overseas assignments on metabolic factors: Panasonic cohort study 23.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the effects of overseas assignments on the metabolic factors associated with lifestyle disease including body mass index, blood pressure, plasma glucose, lipid profiles, liver enzyme, and uric acid in Japanese individuals.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using annual health examination data from employees of the Panasonic Corporation in Japan. We evaluated the differences in the changes in metabolic factors associated with lifestyle disease during the observation periods between the overseas and non-overseas assignment groups.

Associations between anthropometric indices as complementary predictors and incidence of type 2 diabetes; Panasonic Cohort Study 21.

Aims: To compare the predictive abilities of body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-corrected BMI (wBMI), a body shape index (ABSI), and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) for the incidence of type 2 diabetes and determine the practical cut-off values for the Japanese population.

Methods: This study used data from 155,623 participants who had medical checkups with Panasonic Corporation between 2008 and 2021. Predictive abilities of anthropometric indices were evaluated at 13 years using time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses.

[Assessment of the application of atherosclerotic disease risk scores in the workplace].

Objective: In occupational health activities in Japan, evaluating workers' fitness for work following health checkups is a primary task. Health checkups are used to identify workers at high risk of cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases and conduct fit-for-work evaluations. However, identifying high-risk individuals based on a single risk factor may overlook those with multiple risk factors who have a high risk of developing cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases.

Real-world safety and effectiveness of intravenous fomepizole in patients with ethylene glycol and methanol poisoning in Japan: results of a 7-year post-marketing surveillance study.

Background: Fomepizole is a competitive alcohol dehydrogenase inhibitor used for the treatment of ethylene glycol and methanol poisoning. We evaluated the safety and effectiveness of fomepizole in patients with ethylene glycol or methanol poisoning in Japan.

Research Design And Methods: This retrospective post-marketing surveillance study conducted in Japan registered patients who received fomepizole intravenous infusion per the package insert (January 2015-June 2022).

A novel approach to predict acute radiation dermatitis in patients with head and neck cancer using a model based on Bayesian probability.

Purpose: In this study, we aimed to establish a method for predicting the probability of each acute radiation dermatitis (ARD) grade during the head and neck Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) radiotherapy planning phase based on Bayesian probability.

Methods: The skin dose volume >50 Gy (V), calculated using the treatment planning system, was used as a factor related to skin toxicity. The empirical distribution of each ARD grade relative to V was obtained from the ARD grades of 119 patients (55, 50, and 14 patients with G1, G2, and G3, respectively) determined by head and neck cancer specialists.

The roles of JAK2/STAT3 signaling in fusion of the secondary palate.

Cleft palate has a multifactorial etiology. In palatal fusion, the contacting medial edge epithelium (MEE) forms the epithelial seam, which is subsequently removed with the reduction of p63. Failure in this process results in a cleft palate.

Pharmacokinetics, Safety, and Tolerability of Vonoprazan- or Esomeprazole-Based Bismuth-Containing Quadruple Therapy: A Phase 1, Double-Blind, Parallel-Group Study in Adults with Helicobacter pylori Infection in China.

Quadruple therapy comprising 2 antibiotics, a proton pump inhibitor, and bismuth, is recommended for Helicobacter pylori eradication in China. This Phase 1, double-blind, parallel-group study aimed to evaluate the pharmacokinetics, safety, and tolerability of bismuth-containing vonoprazan- or esomeprazole-based quadruple therapy in H. pylori-positive healthy subjects at a single site in China.

Non-negative tensor factorization workflow for time series biomedical data.

Non-negative tensor factorization (NTF) enables the extraction of a small number of latent components from high-dimensional biomedical data. However, NTF requires many steps, which is a hurdle to implementation. Here, we provide a protocol for TensorLyCV, an easy to run and reproducible NTF analysis pipeline using Snakemake workflow management system and Docker container.

Machine learning for observational cosmology.

An array of large observational programs using ground-based and space-borne telescopes is planned in the next decade. The forthcoming wide-field sky surveys are expected to deliver a sheer volume of data exceeding an exabyte. Processing the large amount of multiplex astronomical data is technically challenging, and fully automated technologies based on machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence are urgently needed.

Laparoscopic left hepatectomy in a goat as a training model for laparoscopic anatomic liver resection: results of training courses with a total of 70 goats.

Background: To create a suitable animal model for the training of laparoscopic anatomic liver resection, we performed left hepatectomy using a goat and found its suitability. We have since started using goats for wet-lab training and have gradually standardized the relevant procedures. Herein, we report our standardized training procedures using a goat and discuss its feasibility as a novel training model.

Belt Electrode-Skeletal Muscle Electrical Stimulation in Older Hemodialysis Patients with Reduced Physical Activity: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study.

Background: Although patients receiving hemodialysis are more likely to develop metabolic disorders and muscle weakness at an earlier stage than healthy individuals, many older dialysis patients have difficulty establishing exercise habits to prevent these problems. Therefore, we evaluated the use of belt electrode-skeletal muscle electrical stimulation (B-SES), which can stimulate a wider area than conventional electrical muscle stimulation (EMS), to examine its application and safety in older hemodialysis patients as a means to improve lower extremity function without voluntary effort. Methods: This study was a randomized controlled trial (RCT) involving 20 older dialysis patients (>65 years old) with reduced physical activity.

Detecting time-evolving phenotypic components of adverse reactions against BNT162b2 SARS-CoV-2 vaccine via non-negative tensor factorization.

Symptoms of adverse reactions to vaccines evolve over time, but traditional studies have focused only on the frequency and intensity of symptoms. Here, we attempt to extract the dynamic changes in vaccine adverse reaction symptoms as a small number of interpretable components by using non-negative tensor factorization. We recruited healthcare workers who received two doses of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine at Chiba University Hospital and collected information on adverse reactions using a smartphone/web-based platform.

Physical compatibility of remimazolam with opioid analgesics, sedatives, and muscle relaxants during simulated Y-site administration.

Purpose: There is a lack of information on the compatibility of remimazolam with opioid analgesics, muscle relaxants, and other sedatives. This study aimed to evaluate the physical compatibility of remimazolam with these drug classes.

Methods: Remimazolam was combined with 1 or 2 target drugs (remifentanil, fentanyl, rocuronium, vecuronium, dexmedetomidine, and midazolam).

Clinical features and prognostic impact of asymptomatic pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is highly lethal, and early diagnosis is challenging. Because patients who present with symptoms generally have advanced-stage diseases, analysis of asymptomatic PDAC provides invaluable information for developing strategies for early diagnosis. Here, we reviewed 577 patients with PDAC (372 diagnosed with symptoms [symptomatic group] and 205 without symptoms [asymptomatic group]) diagnosed at our institute.