Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to M Furuta.
We encountered a very rare patient with cerebellar ganglioglioma. To our knowledge, there are 17 reported patients with this disease, of whom ours (a 53-year-old male) was the oldest. The tumor was totally resected, but radiotherapy was also performed to prevent recurrence. He is completely symptom-free 9 months after operation.
We investigated the possible association between alleles of a simple tandem repeat DNA polymorphism in the human glycogen synthase gene and non-obese non-insulin-dependent diabetes (NIDDM) in Japanese subjects. Nine alleles (-4G, -3G, -2G, -1G, 0G, 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G) were identified in the study group of 164 patients with NIDDM and 115 non-diabetic subjects. The overall frequency distribution of the glycogen synthase gene alleles was significantly different between the two groups (p = 0.0316). The 2G allele was found more frequently in patients with NIDDM than in non-diabetic subjects (17.7% vs 8.7%, p = 0.0016). These results suggest that the 2G allele could be a genetic marker of NIDDM in Japanese subjects.
Annual trends of mean birth weight (MBW) at an obstetric facility in the city of Osaka were examined, based on the data in the delivery records for 30 years from January 1962 through December 1991. MBW at this facility had been decreasing during the years of 1975-1985, after being adjusted for parity (primipara/multipara) and the infants' sex. In addition, annual trends of the rate of intrauterine growth and mean gestational period, which are considered to be the two major processes to governing birth weight, were retarded or shortened during almost the same time. Among some possible factors with causal impacts on birth weight, the advance in maternal age, the lowered parity, and the increase in premature delivery may explain these findings. Additionally, it was suggested that the change of socio-economical environment, including the lifestyle of women, may have did not agree with the decreasing trends of MBW.
Seasonal variations of the mean gestational period (MGP) and mean birth weight (MBW) are examined by the traditional method of time-series analysis during the period from 1979 to 1983 in Japan. The results of the present study support the existence of a seasonal rhythm of MGP. Generally MGP showed a deep trough in winter and a shallow one in summer to early autumn. This pattern was similar to that of MBW. The two time series showed a statistically significant coincidence in their monthly fluctuations, and a statistically significant correlation was also observed for their amplitude. According to these results, we concluded that the seasonality in MGP plays an important role in creating the seasonality in MBW. However, the seasonality in MGP can not be the only definitive factor that totally regulates the seasonal variations in MBW. The relationship between the two time series is considered to be different among different seasons as well as regions. For example, we observed a decrease of the seasonal index in winter in the same month for both MBW and MGP, but not necessarily in summer. This suggests that the etiology of the decrease in seasonal variations is different between summer and winter.
We studied the relationship between dietary salt intake, urinary salt excretion, blood pressure and anthropometric measurements in 322 Japanese schoolchildren, aged between 6 and 11 years. Two surveys were carried out: one among a small group of 22 children from the 322, and one involving all 322. In the former group, both a detailed and a simplified dietary questionnaire were used, and nocturnal and 24 hr urinary salt excretion samples were collected. The latter group's survey used only the simplified questionnaire and nocturnal salt excretion measurements. The surveys from the two different groups were then compared to each other. It was found that the simplified questionnaire and nocturnal urinary samples were statistically accurate enough to be used for the purpose of this study. From the latter survey, dietary salt intake among the children was 7.5 +/- 2.7 g per day, (mean +/- SD), and 65 pupils (20%) consumed more than 10 g of salt per day. It was also found that nocturnal urinary salt excretion levels were 1.47 +/- 0.82 g per day, with 30 pupils (9.3%) registering levels of more than 2.5 g per day. There was a significant correlation between these dietary and urinary salt levels. Systolic blood pressure (SPB) among the schoolchildren showed significant correlation with age, height, weight and BMI. For diastolic blood pressure (DBP), a significant correlation was seen in age only. SBP and DBP showed little relation with either dietary salt intake or urinary salt excretion.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
An experiment was carried out to investigate the relationship between dynamic visual acuity and a low dose of alcohol. For the study, 18 subjects ranging from 18 to 25 years of age were chosen. The subjects' dynamic visual acuities were compared before and after drinking 16.5 ml of alcohol, the amount in one standard can of beer. It was found that the acuity improved 30 min. after consuming this low volume of alcohol.
The medical consultation rate of allergic rhinitis (AR) was analysed using Japan National Health Insurance records of Aichi Prefecture for May 1989. Data collected from 88 cities, towns and villages were tabulated and divided into five-year age groups. The standardized medical consultation rate (SMCR) of AR in each municipality was then calculated. It was found that SMCR of AR did not correlate well with the pollen count for Japanese cedars, Japanese cypresses or gramineae, respectively, but a weak correlation with the mean yearly levels of nitrogen dioxide was suggested by the data. There was a significant positive correlation between SMCR of AR and the mean yearly levels of suspended particulate matter, the major element of which is diesel exhaust particulate.
The relationship between paternal occupation and infant birth weight stratified by sex and parity was analyzed based on 1985 vital statistics. The following results were obtained: 1) There were some differences with high statistical significance detected in Mean Birth Weight (MBW) according to 11 different categories of paternal occupation. The lowest MBW was observed in the unemployed and the highest was in protective service workers. 2) The MBW was significantly decreased and the frequency of low birth weight was significantly increased in infants of unemployed father, compared with those of employed. 3) In infants where the father was unemployed, intrauterine growth rate and mean gestational period, which are considered to be two major processes governing birth weight, were delayed and shortened respectively. Based on these results, it is suggested that paternal unemployment may somehow interfere with fetal growth. Further study is needed to clarify the mechanism of this observed relationship. 1) Professional and technical workers. 2) Managers and officials. 3) Clerical and related workers. 4) Sales workers. 5) Agricultural, forestry and fisheries workers. 6) Mining workers. 7) Workers in transport and communications occupation. 8) Craftsmen, production process workers and labours. 9) Protective service workers. 10) Service workers. 11) Unemployed.
Generally speaking, physicians have the impression that intraocular pressure (IOP) in winter is higher than in summer, but it is very difficult to evaluate the difference between summer and winter IOP statistically, because the treatments of glaucoma patients are changed according to their conditions. We compared the winter and summer IOP of normal subjects and of several glaucoma patients who had no therapy or no change in therapy. The subjects were divided into four groups, i.e., 20 eyes of the normal group, 17 eyes of the ocular hypertensive group, 24 eyes of the primary open angle glaucoma group, and 52 eyes of the low tension glaucoma group. The difference in mean IOP between summer and winter were evaluated for each subject. In all groups, the mean difference in mean winter IOP was significantly higher. The ups and downs of IOP were greater in the ocular hypertensive group and the primary open angle glaucoma group than in the normal group and the low tension glaucoma group. These results suggest that the seasonal variation of IOP should be taken in consideration when treating glaucoma patients.
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A case of cerebral cysticercosis is reported in a 49-year-old female who presented with headache, nausea, and vomiting. Lumbar CSF showed the findings of mild aseptic meningitis. CT scan revealed an enlargement of the left ambient cistern and a small cystic lesion in the left frontal cortex. MRI demonstrated multilobular cysts in the left ambient cistern with enhancement of their capsules, which compressed and distorted the midbrain. The cysts were surgically excised, and histological examination of the specimen disclosed characteristic features of cysticercus with viable larva. An excellent value of MRI in the diagnosis of intracisternal cysticercosis is emphasized.
Three cases of second primary lung cancer following radiation therapy to the first pulmonary cancer were reported. In all cases, the first cancers located in the upper lobe and were unresectable diseases, their histologic type being epidermoid carcinoma. Radiation therapy was given with total doses of 60-70 Gy. Ten years later the second cancers arose in the contralateral lung and were treated with radiation therapy again.
Flat-panel displays, especially liquid crystal displays (LCDs), are almost universally used today. Do LCDs assure better readability than cathode-ray tubes (CRTs)? Two experiments were carried out to determine which type of display is better using a newly developed device. Four types of displays were tested; negative and positive CRTs, and LCDs with and without backlighting. Variables were the type of display, age, and gender. At first, analyses of readability using eye movements were conducted. Middle-aged subjects showed slower reading speed than young subjects. Then, experiments of pupillo-accommodative functions were carried out. Non-backlit LCDs reduced focusing speed among young subjects and reading performance in middle-aged subjects. Since middle-aged workers have more difficulties than young workers, they should have their vision properly corrected for VDT viewing, more appropriate displays and a more comfortable illuminance environment than young workers.
Flat-panel displays, especially liquid crystal displays (LCDs), are now firmly established as important devices for information displays. But do LCDs assure better readability than cathode-ray tubes (CRTs)? We carried out an experiment using four types of displays: negative and positive CRTs, and LCDs with and without backlighting. A syllable-checking task using the Japanese katakana alphabet was conducted among fifteen healthy workers. They were divided into three groups; Group 1 had five young males aged 25 to 29, Group 2 was made up of five young females aged 18 to 24, and Group 3 consisted of five middle-aged workers who were 40 to 50 years old. We used four ambient light levels: 200 lx, 500 lx, 1250 lx without reflected glare, and 500 lx with reflected glare, on the display screens from behind. The illuminance of the glare was approximately 200 cd/m2. Multiple regression analysis showed that non-backlit LCDs reduced reading performance in middle-aged subjects significantly. Since middle-aged workers have more difficulties than young workers, they need more appropriate displays and a more comfortable illuminance environment than younger workers.
The morbidity of allergic rhinitis (AR) based on Japan National Health Insurance records was calculated from 1981 to 1990. The data shows a three-fold increase of the rate for AR patients in those 10 years. Additionally, Aichi Prefecture's morbidity of AR was analysed for May 1991. When cross-sectional methods were used for May 1991, it was found that the morbidity of AR showed little correlation with the pollen count for Japanese cedars and Japanese cypresses. However, the results suggested possible correlations between the morbidity of AR and the mean yearly levels of the pollutant components SPM and NO2.
The effects of presentation speed and both positive and negative CRT (cathode ray tube) displays on pupil size were studied. The pupillary areas of 12 female student volunteers were measured by infrared videopupillography. The three presentation speeds were no change for 12 sec., a change every 2 sec. for 12 sec., and a change every 1/2 sec. for 12 sec. Two-way analysis of variance showed that the pupil size in the negative displays was significantly larger than that in the positive displays. A difference in pupillary area results from different display speeds, irrespective of a difference in polarity.
The relationship was examined between government smoking control levels and eight health, social and economic indicators in 93 countries. Governmental smoking control levels were quantified by assigning a point to each control measure. The controls were as follows: health warning on cigarette package; tar, nicotine or carbon monoxide level indications on cigarette package; ban on advertising on TV or radio; and prohibiting sales to minors. The eight indicators were annual rate of population increase, infant mortality rate, population per hospital bed, number of TV sets per 1000 people, protein supply per capita per day, military expenditure as % of GNP, gross national product (GNP) and % of primary school enrollment. We analyzed predictors of the smoking control level using multiple linear regression analysis with these eight indicators. This regression model indicates that the higher the GNP is, the stronger the smoking control level is, and GNP alone accounts for 42% of the variance in smoking control levels. The set of eight indicators explained 49% of it. GNP had the largest partial regression coefficient in the standardized model. Therefore, a low GNP might be an important factor behind the difficulty in strengthening government controls on smoking.
Subjects were a total of 726 Japanese male transport service workers between the ages of 35 and 50. They were analyzed for obesity and drinking or smoking habits in relation to their HDL-cholesterol level and total cholesterol concentration. The cases were 100 low HDL-cholesterol (less than 40 mg/dl) and 121 high total cholesterol (greater than 230 mg/dl) subjects. We used a multiple logistic regression analysis. As for abnormally high total cholesterol, it was determined that the odds ratios at 40, 45, and 50 years of age were 1.95, 2.23, and 2.65, respectively, when 35-year-olds were considered the baseline. Abnormally high total cholesterol showed an odds ratio of 0.27 among thin subjects with a Body Mass Index (BMI) less than 21.0, when subjects with a standard BMI were calculated as the baseline. With reference to low HDL-cholesterol, the odds ratio for lean subjects was 0.30 against those who had standard habitus, while subjects with a BMI of more than 25.1 had an odds ratio of more than double. Compared with nondrinkers, low HDL-cholesterol exhibited odds ratios of 0.16 and 0.23, respectively, for moderate and heavy drinkers. In cases of low HDL-cholesterol, the odds ratios for mild and heavy smokers were 1.91 and 2.27, respectively, versus nonsmokers.