A cytogenetic investigation was made with induced-aborted conceptuses in order to clarify the frequency of gross chromosome aberrations in the early stage of pregnancy. Samples were limited to those aborted within three months of gestation and were taken only abortions induced for socio-economic reasons. Embryos and the choroinic villi were both examined by the direct method. The fluorescent staining method was used to identify the Y-body for sex determination. Of the 1, 661 cases observed, chromosome analyses were successful in 1, 250 cases (75.3%). The mean maternal age was 28.0 (min. 17-max. 46) years, and the mean gestational age was 8.4±1.39 weeks (mean±S.D.).
Eighty chromosome anomalies were detected (6.4%). The incidence increased as the maternal age advanced. Aneuploidies, polyploidies and structural abnormalities were found in 64 cases (5.1%), 14 cases (1.1%) and 2 cases (0.2%), respectively. In the distribution of trisomies, the maternal age-dependence was distinctive. In monosomies and polyploidies, however, this phenomenon was not observed. The incidence of chromosome anomalies decreased in proportion to the increase in gestational age.

View full abstract

The general features of the way handicapped people using wheelchairs live were studied in terms of the separation of different household activities, and the choice of living style.
Handicapped residents living in public apartment houses owned by the local governments of Okayama, Kurashiki, Ibara and Beppu cities, and by Okayama and Hiroshima prefectures, were interviewed beginning from May of 1977 for a year.
The results are as follows:
(1) 100% of the subjects separated eating and sleeping by utilizing the dining-kitchen for meals.
(2) To decrease the amount of movement required in daily activity, 81% of the subjects used the same room for both sleeping and daily living.
(3) With two exceptions, all the families had separate sleeping rooms for children and adults. In one of the exceptions, the handicapped person needed constant attention.
(4) Casual acquaintances of the handicapped person were received in the dining-kitchen, while closer friends were entertained in the bedroom.
(5) Bedrooms for the handicapped tended to be westernized, and all had adopted a western style bed in preference to a Japanese style futon.
The results suggest several points to be taken into consideration when designing living quarters for handicapped people in wheelchairs; for example, spacious western style rooms for greater ease in movement and movable partitions for combining rooms when more space is needed. The latter is especially necessary in cases where severely handicapped people must be taken care of.
The above changes should be made with financial assistance from national and local governments.

View full abstract

The way handicapped people in wheelchairs live in public apartment houses has been discussed in a previous report.
I here report the actual status of the structure of and equipment in public apartment houses for the handicapped and requests for various improvements.
With the exception of going up and down stairs, more than 70% of the people polled stated that they could do house work with the aid of special equipment. Special arrangements in the bathroom, lavatory, kitchen and the approach walkway to the building had already been made for handicapped residents, but some items designed especially for the handicapped were found to be inconvenient for other family members not using wheelchairs.
The following specially-designed equipment was inconvenient for handicapped people; the crack under the entrance door, the shape of the toilets, improperly arranged kitchen tables etc. Moreover, handicapped couples both using wheelchairs complained about insufficient space in dining-kitchens, western-style rooms and entrance halls. In addition, not having the closet in the western-style room was an inconvenience.
The height of the handrails attached for the handicapped using wheelchairs was not convenient for other types of handicapped people. The height of the kitchen table designed for people in wheelchairs was inconvenient for non-handicapped family members.
Fire alarms, fire extinguishers, showers in the bathroom, frames for drying futon were found to be indispensable for the handicapped.
Hanging shelves, gas tables, ignition switches for bath heaters and other equipment were of incovenient height for use by the handicapped in wheelchairs.
Given the above, the changes that should be made can be summarized as follows:
(1) A toilet system is needed that allows the style of toilet to be changed according to the physical requirements of the user.
(2) Adequate space is necessary for cases in which two or more members of the household use wheelchairs. This is particularly necessary in western style rooms, the dining-kitchen, and the entrance hall. This would not be necessary for Japanese style rooms.
(3) The adoption of handrails of two different heights for use by both handicapped using and not using wheelchairs.
(4) For the family in which the kitchen is used by non-handicapped people, a kitchen table of normal or adjustable height should be supplied.

View full abstract

Male rats were trained daily for 20 days in a multiple maze with five choice points in the pathway. To observe the locus of their behavior during training in the maze, electrical information from 12 gates with infrared ray monitors installed along the pathway was recorded remotely. Two parameters were obtained from this record; one was the average time spent in a gate interval, the other was the distance moved per second (speed).
One group of rats was fed ad libitum and the other had its food withheld from evening to the end of training the next morning. Each group was subdivided into three groups for training under different noise conditions, the silent group, the group exposed to noise for one hour before the start of daily training, and the group exposed to noise during daily training. The number of rats in each group was twenty. They were exposed to noise of a wide octave-band at an intensity of 100dB (C).
The results were as follows;
1) A significant inverse correlation was observed between the two parameters.
2) As training progressed under the silent condition, the average time spent in a gate was reduced and the speed rose gradually.
3) These changes were more remarkable in the fasted group than in the group fed ad libitum.
4) No significant changes were observed after the 9th day of training for the average time spent in a gate or after 11th day of training for speed.
5) As training progressed the rising grade of psychomotor activity was inhibited by exposure to noise.
6) This inhibiting effect observed far speed was more remarkable in the group exposed to noise before the start of training than in the group exposed to noise during training. This may have been due to differences in the duration of exposure to noise.
7) Since observational error based on the unequality of each gate interval was included in the average time spent in a gate interval, the difference in the effects of both exposed conditions was unclear.

View full abstract

The daily number of new patients with acute respiratory and digestive diseases was investigated from July 11 to September 10, 1975 using policyholders of the National Health Insurance living in the northern part of Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture and in Nagaokakyo, Oyamazaki, Kyoto Prefecture. Because the number of new patients on Monday was very large, and that on Saturday and on Sunday was very small, only data for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were used in this study.
Daily maximum. and minimum temperatures, daily mean relative humidity, daily mean wind velocity, daily maximum oxidant and SO₂ concentrations were the variables chosen to represent meteorological conditions and air pollution. The correlation between daily incidence of acute respiratory and digestive diseases and these meteorological conditions and air pollution was evaluated by the method of lagged cross-correlation.
1) The daily number of new patients with acute respiratory disease was positively correlated with the daily maximum temperature before 5 to 7 days. The daily number of new patients with acute digestive disease was positively correlated with the daily minimum temperature on the same day and before 1 to 3 days. These phenomena were similar in both districts.
2) In Amagasaki, the daily number of new patients. with acute respiratory disease was positively correlated with the daily maximum SO₂ concentration before 4 to 10 days. However, no positive correlation was observed in Nagaokakyo, Oyamazaki where the SO₂ concentration was much lower.

View full abstract

The distributions and time-courses of the organochlorine pesticides (OCP), PCB and PCT in foodstuffs, daily commodities, animals and human body samples obtained from city areas in Niigata and Akita prefectures were investigated during the period from August 1969 to July 1975. In addition, experiments on DDT intake into the human body through cigarette smoking and on PCB uptake into fish were performed. For PCB and PCT, body distribution in the rabbit and the biological half times in the mouse were examined.
The following results were obtained:
1) β-BHC in milk was the most abundant, making up 67% of the total BHC. It was assumed that the BHC contamination in milk came from paddy straw contaminated with BHC. The residues found in milk in 1973 were one tenth of the amounts found in 1971.
2) BHC and DDT were detected in most of the samples of fruits and vegetables tested. Cucumber and potato were highly contaminated by dieldrin. Aldrin which had been used as a soil fungicide was found to be the immediate cause.
3) There were high PCB accumulations in fishes, especially in dace (UGUI) among the freshwater fishes and in mackerel (SABA) among the salt-water fishes, and in cats and fowls (egrets, etc.) that were heavy fish eaters.
4) No PCT was detected in vegetable foodstuffs, fish and shellfish, nor in dairy products, but there were accumulations in dogs and in fowls with polyphagia feeding habits.
5) In human milk, BHC, DDT, dieldrin, PCB and PCT were detected, and no significant change was found in a follow-up survey of OCP and PCB during the 3 years 1971∼1973.
6) The accumulation of OCP, PCB and PCT found in human fat was similar to that found in human milk. No correlation between the PCB and PCT contents was found.
7) In the OCP survey of standard diet samples in Niigata, seasonal variations of sorts were observed; the amounts of OCP were especially remarkable in meats and vegetables.
8) DDT transfer into human body due to cigarette smoking was found, but the amounts were slight.
9) The experimental data on PCB uptake into fish in water that contained PCB (KC-400) showed that the gills and the surface of the body as well as the bait in the food chain were important routes for PCB uptake.
10) The body distribution in the rabbit after peroral or subcutaneous administration showed no distinct differences in PCB (KC-600) and PCT (KC-C). The biological half times of KC-600 and KC-C in the whole body of the mouse were about 260 and 160 days, respectively.
In conclusion, for BHC, the main route was a BHC agent spread in rice fields→milk and beef→human body; for DDT it was a DDT agent→animal foodstuff (e.g., pork, fish)→human body; for dieldrin and heptachlor epoxide it was an aldrin and heptachlor agent scattered in the soil→agricultural product (e.g., cucumber, potato)→human body; for PCB it was environmental water→fish and shellfish→human body. However, for PCT the main route of accumulation in the human body could not be clearly defined, but inhalation and direct absorption through the skin might be possible routes.

View full abstract