Migraine is a debilitating neurological disorder, which affects approximately 10% of the general population. Recent advances in functional neuroimaging as well as accumulating data obtained from animal studies have provided important clues to the pathophysiology of migraine. In the past, it was believed that migraine was a vascular disorder, such that migraine aura was induced by vasoconstriction with ensuing abnormal vasodilation responsible for the development of headache. However, it is now clear that brain abnormalities are primarily implicated in migraine pathogenesis. Migraine-associated prodrome is likely to reflect aberrant activity of the hypothalamus and the limbic system, whereas migraine aura is caused by a unique electrical brain phenomenon termed cortical spreading depolarization/depression. Migraine headache is likely to be caused by abnormal activation of the trigeminovascular system; wherein calcitonin gene-related peptide plays a pivotal role. Collectively, migraine symptomatology should be interpreted in relation to underlying biological mechanisms on a phase-to-phase basis.

The ActiGraph accelerometer is one of the most widely used motion sensor detectors in research. However, its applicability in Japanese has not been fully clarified. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the validity of equations for estimating physical activity intensity by the ActiGraph in Japanese. The subjects wore the ActiGraph wGT3X-BT on their waist and wrist during walking, running, and activities of daily living to assess the intensity of their physical activities. The results suggest that when worn on the waist, the ActiGraph provided the best estimation when used with Crouter’s equation. When worn on the wrist, it could not accurately estimate the intensities of the subjects’ physical activities.

Purpose: To investigate the effects of bed bath with dry wiping on physiological and subjective responses and the differences of these in gender and cutaneous thermal sensitivity.

Methods: Eleven healthy male and female subjects participated in two examination conditions: bed bath with dry wiping (DW) and without dry wiping conditions (non-DW). Additionally, warm and cold thresholds were examined to assess cutaneous thermal sensitivity. Measurement items were skin temperature, skin water content (SWC), transepidermal water loss (TEWL), thermal sensation (TS), and thermal comfort (TC).

Results: SWC and TEWL after bed bath with DW were significantly lower than were those after non-DW in both male and female participants. The decrease in skin temperature after bed bath in females tended to be greater than in males. On the other hand, there was no significant difference in subjective responses between the DW and non-DW participants. Moreover, no significant effect of gender and cutaneous thermal sensitivity on TS and TC were indicated.

Conclusion: It was suggested that DW suppresses water evaporation from the skin after bed bath. The decrease in skin temperature after a bed bath without dry wiping tends to be larger in females. However, there were no significant differences in subjective responses due to conditions.

This study examined physiological and psychological responses under conditions where multiple stress coping methods were induced. The experiment was conducted with and without the introduction of the scent of the Hinoki cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa), when the participants were at rest and while performing a calculation task that had to be repeated twice. Participants’ skin conductance levels (SCL) peaked at the start and at the end of the calculation task, while their heart rates (HR) remained high during the task. Cerebral activity increased during the calculation task, especially when the scent was introduced. Subjective evaluation was improved when the scent was introduced. These results showed that (i) SCL and HR reflected differences in stress coping methods, and that (ii) the scent of the Hinoki cypress had both relaxing and refreshing effects.

The purpose of this study is to examine differences in body cooling according to the parts immersed in high-concentration artificial carbonic acid water.

The subjects’ core (tympanic) temperature was increased by a pedal ergometer. They then immersed their hands or hands and forearms in stirred 25°C carbonic acid water. The decrease in tympanic temperature was observed.

There was no significant difference in the decrease in tympanic temperature between the two conditions.

The results suggest that immersing the hands in carbonic acid water might reduce core temperature elevated by exercise heat production/environmental heat stress to the same extent as immersing the forearms.

In this article, we review the previous findings on relationships between the ability of time perception and pathology of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Time perception deficits are suggested to be the third neuropsychological pathway of ADHD. Even though it is well known that ADHD patients overestimate the time passed, these effects and related mechanisms on ADHD are still unclear according to the complexity of ADHD pathology. While the neural localization related to time perception and ADHD neural dysfunctions related to executive function and reward partially overlap, dysfunction peculiar to time perception is also observed. Furthermore, ADHD and the typical development group may have different relationships between task performance of time perception and executive function systems. In future studies, response for time perception tasks in individuals with ADHD should be examined closely in particular from the perspective of task characters and ADHD complexity.