Increased antidepressant prescriptions following the 2018 Japan floods: a longitudinal analysis using the national health insurance database.

Natural disasters are known to affect the mental health of the victims; however, the understanding of their impact on real-world clinical practice remains insufficient. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of the 2018 Japan floods, one of the largest disasters in Japan's recorded history, on antidepressant prescriptions over time. Prescription data from the medical insurance claims database covering three prefectures that accounted for 90% of flood damage were analyzed for the years before and after the floods.

Kif11-haploinsufficient oocytes reveal spatially differential requirements for chromosome biorientation.

Bipolar spindle assembly and chromosome biorientation are prerequisites for chromosome segregation during cell division. The kinesin motor KIF11 (also widely known as Eg5) drives spindle bipolarization by sliding antiparallel microtubules bidirectionally, elongating a spherical spindle into a bipolar-shaped structure in acentrosomal oocytes. During meiosis I, this process stretches homologous chromosome pairs, establishing chromosome biorientation at the spindle equator.

A Patient with Pustulotic Arthroosteitis with Isolated Spinal Lesions Successfully Treated with Risankizumab: A Case Report.

Pustulotic arthroosteitis (PAO) is a rare chronic inflammatory arthropathy associated with palmoplantar pustulosis (PPP). PAO involves various extra-palmoplantar sites, including spinal lesions. Systemic treatment, including biologics, is required for refractory cases of PAO.

A Case of Splenic Infarction Associated with Sickle Cell Trait: A Diagnosis Based on a Characteristic History of Climbing Mt. Fuji, with a Brief Literature Review.

Sickle cell trait (SCT) is typically asymptomatic, but high-altitude exposure and intense exertion can trigger complications, such as splenic infarction. We herein report the case of a 24-year-old African-American man of Haitian descent who developed flank pain after climbing Mt. Fuji.

Impact of the 2018 Western Japan Heavy Rain Disaster on Anti-influenza Virus Drug Prescribing: A Longitudinal Analysis Using the National Health Insurance Claims Database.

Objectives: No study has evaluated the relationship between heavy rain disasters and influenza by comparing victims and non-victims, and we investigated the association between the 2018 western Japan heavy rain disaster and influenza.

Methods: All patients registered in the National Health Insurance Claims Database and treated in the Hiroshima, Okayama, and Ehime prefectures were included in this retrospective cohort study conducted 1-year post-disaster. A multivariate mixed-effects logistic regression analysis was used to assess the association between the disaster and anti-influenza drug prescribing.

Impact of COVID-19 on antidepressant prescription: a matched cohort study using the National insurance claims database in Japan.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected global health, leading to an increased incidence of mental health disorders, particularly depression.

Methods: This matched cohort study aimed to assess the impact of COVID-19 on antidepressant prescriptions using data from Japan's National Insurance Claims Database. The primary outcome was new antidepressant prescriptions, with SARS-CoV-2 infection as exposure.

Safety of mycophenolate mofetil in systemic lupus erythematosus maintenance therapy: insights from the LUNA registry in a nationwide prospective cohort study.

Objective: We aimed to compare the incidence of severe infections between mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) and other immunosuppressants in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) on maintenance therapy using data from the Lupus Registry of Nationwide Institutions in Japan.

Methods: This study employed a prospective cohort design, including patients with SLE undergoing maintenance therapy. Exposure was defined as MMF treatment, and the control group included individuals who received other immunosuppressants (non-MMF) treatments.

CTHRC1 promotes bone metastasis in prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer causes a high frequency of bone metastases. The purpose of this study was to identify molecules that regulate prostate cancer bone metastasis as potential therapeutic and/or prognostic targets in prostate cancer, using integrative genome-wide data. Based on the biological characterization of prostate cancer cell lines and integrated big data analysis of clinical samples, we identified CTHRC1 as a candidate gene that regulates prostate cancer bone metastasis.

MPS1 promotes timely spindle bipolarization to prevent kinetochore-microtubule attachment errors in oocytes.

Incorrect kinetochore-microtubule attachment leads to chromosome segregation errors. The risk of incorrect attachment is high in acentrosomal oocytes, where kinetochores are surrounded by randomly oriented microtubules until spindle bipolarization. Regulation of the temporal relationship between acentrosomal spindle bipolarization and kinetochore-microtubule attachment is unknown.

Elevated amputation rates in COVID-19 survivors: Insights from a large-scale Japanese cohort study.

Objective: COVID-19 has been linked to increased vascular complications, but its long-term impact on amputation rates is unclear. This study evaluated amputation risk post-COVID-19 using a nationwide insurance claims database in Japan.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using data from the National Database of Health Insurance Claims and Specific Health Checkups of Japan.

Effect of the 2018 Japan floods and COVID-19 pandemic on cognitive decline among atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima, Japan: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Atomic bomb survivors (ABSs) in Hiroshima are facing climate change-related natural disasters and emerging infectious diseases. The cognitive function of aging ABSs is vulnerable to the inevitable environmental changes caused by the 2018 Japan floods and COVID-19 pandemic.

Aims: This study examined the effects of these two disastrous events on cognitive function.

One-Pot Synthesis and Immobilization of Gold Nanoparticles Using Peptidyl Microbeads.

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and catalytic activity that are not found in bulk gold and have been studied in various fields. Among these, immobilization of AuNPs on various solid-phase substrates is known to produce stable catalytic activity and specific SPRs and research on the immobilization of AuNPs has been conducted actively. However, the conventional method requires the preparation and immobilization of AuNPs in separate processes, making it difficult to prepare immobilized AuNPs in a one-pot process.

Impact of 2018 Japan floods on allergic rhinitis prescriptions.

Background: Climate change and natural disasters can impact allergic conditions. The 2018 Japan floods, which occurred in July 2018, were among the largest water-related disasters in Japan's history. We aimed to investigate the impact of flooding on prescription rates for allergic rhinitis.

Comparison of Outcomes Between Japanese Patients With Older-Onset Granulomatosis With Polyangiitis/Microscopic Polyangiitis and Younger-Onset Patients in Daily Clinical Practice: A Two-Center Retrospective Study in Japan.

Aims: Although previous studies have reported poor outcomes in older-onset (≥ 75 years old) antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) compared with younger-onset AAV, the distinct cause of poor prognosis remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the clinical features, therapies, and outcomes of older patients with granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) and patients with microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) compared to younger-onset patients.

Methods: This two-center retrospective cohort study enrolled 70 newly-onset Japanese patients with AAV (GPA and MPA) from the Fukushima Medical University Hospital and Ohta-Nishinouchi Hospital in Fukushima, Japan, between 2004 and 2019.

The Role of Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis in Predicting Secondary Surgical Interventions for Lymphedema.

: Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), known for its utility in monitoring fluid balance and lymphedema progression, is non-invasive and practical. However, circumferential tape measurements remain the gold standard for assessing limb volume changes, despite operator variability. This study investigated whether BIA could reliably assess the need for secondary surgical interventions in lymphedema patients.

Successful treatment of rheumatoid arthritis complicated by anti-Jo-1 antibody-positive myopathy with abatacept: A case report.

Abatacept (ABT) is effective in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).　However, there is no consensus regarding the treatment of patients with RA and idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM).　Here, we describe the case of a 55-year-old Japanese female with a 5-year history of RA who developed anti-Jo1 antibody-positive IIM.

Evaluating antibiotic susceptibility trends in S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae isolates during the COVID-19 pandemic: An interrupted time series analysis of a nationwide antimicrobial resistance database.

Background: The heightened infection prevention measures implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic reduced the incidence of certain other infections; however, the impact of this decrease on antimicrobial susceptibility remains undetermined. Herein, we analyzed data from a large, multicenter, Japanese infectious disease database to evaluate the antibiotic susceptibility trends among bacterial species whose incidence reduced during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Using a nationwide Japanese AMR database covering hundreds of hospitals, this study applied interrupted time-series analysis to examine level and trend changes in monthly susceptibility rates between the pre-pandemic (January 2018-December 2019) and pandemic (January 2020-March 2023) periods among bacteria whose incidence rates continuously decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Development of detection system for lead ions in mixture solutions using UV-Vis measurements with peptide immobilized microbeads.

Environmental pollution caused by heavy metals are problems worldwide. In particular, pollution and poisoning by lead ions (Pb) continue to be common and serious problems. Hence, there is a need for a widely usable method to easily detect Pb from solutions containing organic materials from environmental water such as seas, ponds, etc.

Reoperation of Pulmonary Artery Intimal Sarcoma for Recurrence After Pulmonary Artery Replacement.

Pulmonary artery intimal sarcoma has very poor prognosis, for which radical resection may be difficult. A 68-year-old man with pulmonary artery intimal sarcoma underwent bilateral pulmonary artery resection and replacement. At 31 months postoperatively, recurrence occurred at the anastomotic site of the right pulmonary artery.

Efficacy of secukinumab in Takayasu arteritis with myocardial infarction complicated with generalized pustular psoriasis: A case report.

Rationale: Takayasu arteritis (TAK) is an autoimmune disease that causes chronic inflammation targeting the aortic wall. Since many patients are resistant to steroid treatment, multiple immunosuppressants or interleukin-6 (IL-6) suppression therapy have served as treatment alternatives. However, there are very few reports on the effectiveness of biologics against inflammatory cytokines upstream of IL-6.

Successful treatment of anti-signal recognition particle antibody-positive myositis with intravenous cyclophosphamide: A case report.

Myositis-specific autoantibodies play an important role on the disease phenotype of idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs). Anti-signal recognition particle (SRP) antibody-positive patients with IIMs may present with severe myopathy and highly elevated serum creatine kinase levels. These patients are often resistant to immunosuppressive therapy, but there is no established treatment strategy.

Idiopathic Multicentric Castleman Disease Diagnosed after Lower Extremity Venous Thrombosis Mimicking Immunoglobulin G4-related Disease.

It is difficult to distinguish idiopathic multicentric Castleman disease (iMCD) from immunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD). A 47-year-old man was diagnosed with venous thrombosis in the right lower extremity. Multiple lymphadenopathies and splenomegaly were incidentally detected.