Background : The purpose of this study was to examine the feasibility of home visit by nurses with higher palliative care specialty (NHPCS) with visiting nurses, which became covered by Japanese national medical insurance system in 2012, using a geographical information system (GIS). Methods : We examined the distribution of NHPCS among prefectures and the association between the number of NHPCS and the location of the training institutions. Furthermore, in the prefectures with a small number of NHPCS, the geographical associations between the hospitals to which the NHPCS belonged and the home visiting nursing centers are analyzed by MANDARA Results : The distribution of NHPCS per aging population differed by 2.6-fold among the prefectures, and the number of NHPCS was higher in prefectures with a high admission capacity into certified nurse training courses relevant to cancer. In the prefectures with a small number of NHPCS, the percentage of cases in which the hospital to which the NHPCS belonged was not within a 10 km radius of the home visit nursing center was high. Discussion : From this analysis performed using the GIS, the uneven distribution of NHPCS and home visit nursing stations, and their geographical association became clear. Elimination of disparities in both human resources and training institutions among and also within prefectures is recommended.

View full abstract

For the purpose of developing a new scale of activities of daily living (ADL) among the patients with hemophilia, an anonymous survey was conducted. Main items investigated were subjects' biographical data, ADL and Health related Quality of Life (HRQOL). The difficulty degree of 21 items of ADL was investigated. HRQOL was measured by using SF-36. Valid responses were 259 (37.5%), average age was 40.9 years old. For the purpose of developing a new scale of ADL, 12 items were pick out of 21 items and a ranking analysis was performed by using principal component analysis. 12 items of ADL were squatting and up and down stairs, climbing a steep, standing up by the floors, sitting down on the floors, cutting toe nails, removing buttons, walking without any supports, washing one's face on the both hands, washing oneself, sitting down on the chairs, removing one's socks. According to the result of principal component analysis, 1st and 2nd component were extracted. The 1st. component was interpreted as ability for ADL. It was able to be said so because the ratio for all axial variance was 49.0%, and ADL of the subjects could almost be interpreted on the 1st. component. A total score of this scale was found ranging from 0 to 100 points. ADL of subjects were scored using this scale. There were significant association between HRQOL / bleeding frequency / severity and this scale. By using this scale, it is possible to mark for the difficulty degree of ADL.

View full abstract

Purpose of Study : Reported recovery effects of hyeroxia are conflicted. Increased oxygen concentration influences oxygen transport throughout the organism, therefore it would affect not only peripheral factors in fatigue such as metabolic acidosis in the muscle tissue but also central factors such as the activation levels of central neural drive. This study aimed to identify the effects and the mechanisms of normobaric hyperoxia on recovery of local muscle fatigue. Methods : 12 male subjects performed 3×3×greater than 30 seconds of isometric quadriceps exercise at 70% of maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) separated by two 15-minutes recovery sessions under one of two different oxygen conditions, one in normoxia (NOX; 20.9% O_2) and one in hyperoxia (HOX; 30.0% O_2). To assess the degree of fatigue and recovery, five parameters were used; MVIC, integrated EMG (iEMG) activity, endurance time to exhaustion, blood lactate, and perceived exertion measured by a visual analog scale (VAS). Results : MVIC improved an average by approximately 14% in HOX compared to NOX at the conclusion of the second recovery session. Further, iEMG changes were nearly proportional to MVIC and were significantly greater in HOX than in NOX. Reduction in endurance time, and increases in blood lactate and VAS were similar between HOX and NOX. Conclusions and Practical Applications : Based on our findings, we hypothesized that hyperoxia mainly increases the central motor output to the activated muscle and therefore muscle force output by responding to the biological conditions in peripheral muscles. For quicker recovery, athletes are recommended to use two sets of 15-minutes recovery under 30.0% hyperoxia.

View full abstract

Neural stem cells (NSCs) have the ability to self-renew, and are capable of differentiating into neurons, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. Here, we examined the effects of mitogens, fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) and epidermal growth factor (EGF), on NSCs prepared from mouse ES cells by the neural stem sphere (NSS) method. Cultured with mitogens, the NSCs were promoted to proliferate by the mitogens in dose-dependent manners. Affinity of the NSCs for FGF-2 was lower than that for EGF, but promotion effects by FGF-2 was higher than that by EGF. The promotion effects by FGF-2 and EGF were not additive. Doubling time of the NSCs cultured with FGF-2 was 15.1h. Subculture of the cells could be stably passaged at least 5 times. Irrespective of the mitogen added to the culture, the NSCs expressed high levels of mRNAs of the marker genes for NSCs, Nestin, Musashi-1, and mRNAs of two types of FGF receptors and EGF receptor, FGFR2, FGFR3, and EGFR, respectively. In contrast, the NSCs expressed low levels of mRNAs of the marker genes for neurons, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes, NF-M, GFAP and MBP, respectively, and mRNAs of FGF receptor-4, FGFR4. The gene expression levels of the NSCs were stably maintained during culture at least 5 passages. These results confirm that the NSCs prepared from ES cells maintain potential of active proliferation under culture conditions containing FGF-2 or EGF.

View full abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the educational program for first year university students, specifically their recognition and understanding towards learning, health perception and emotional quotient. The first year curriculum was based on the Model of Human Occupation (MOHO). The participants were 41 students who took the Career Development I course in the Department of Occupational Therapy at University A. Seven of the 15 sessions were based on MOHO and taught the connection between students skills and career design with a focus on volition, habituation and performance capacity. Students were taught through group work and individual assignments. The program's effectiveness was measured using the students' base attributes, an occupation questionnaire, the MOS 36-Item Health Survey and an Emotional Intelligence Scale (EQS) test. At the conclusion of the program, self reported study time, performance and the EQS total score were significantly increased. Therefore, we could conclude that the first year education program based on MOHO improved students skills, specifically their recognition and understanding towards learning. The program also showed the effectiveness of Emotional Intelligence, which is important in daily life. OQ was used in career design to motivate students to think of their future and their individual educational goals were set with the help of their teachers.

View full abstract