With respect to statistics on out patients with senile psychiatric disorders, a few reports have thus far been made available by university hospitals in major urban areas but none from any rural general hospitals. This study is an attempt to grasp the real status of senile psychiatric disorders as observed in outpatient clinics.
1) There have been signs for a yearly rise in the prevalence rate of senile psychiatric diseases, and there is the possibility of diagnosing new patients at a rate of one to six aged people (60 years of age and over).
2) Of all the patients, 45% came directly to our hospital, whereas 55% either were referrals from other clinics or came to the hospital after their consultation with other clinics. Of the latter group, 55% were referred by other departments of the hospital, 38% by outside physicians in our district, and 7% by local administrative offices. This finding appears to suggest that the incidence of hypertension and other somatic complications is high among aged people and also that phsychiatric disorders may sometimes manifest due to somatic disorders.
3) A check of the prevalence by month reveals that the prevalence is highest in March, high from spring to summer, lowest in autumn and low in winter. In this respect, there exists a difference between the organic diseases and the functional diseases. In the former group, the prevalence is concentrated in spring and summer, whereas in the latter, the prevalence remains high from spring to early summer, low in summer and transiently becomes high in early autumn.
4) By sex, the prevalence rate is 52% for males and 48% for females. By age, the prevalence decreases with age and takes a sharp downturn after the age of 75.
By type of disease, senile organic diseases (Group A) account for 54.4%, functional diseases (Group B) 40.0%, and other organic diseases (Group C) 14.5%. Group A increases with age among males, whereas it is concentratedly high among males of 75 years of age and over. Group C is significantly greater among males.
5) A check of the trend of each disease group in the past 15 years indicates that there have been signs for a rise for each group but the rises are significant particularly for Groups B and C. In the latter half period, the percentage of Group B is greater than that of Group A. Against this background, there seems to be a rise in the incidence of psychiatric diseases among rural females.
6) The hospitalization rate stood at 17.5%. By sex, the rate was 20% for males and 15% for females. By type of disease, the ratio stood at 21% for Group C, 17% for Group A and 16% for Group B.
By place of residence, differences between the towns and the villages (27% for the towns and 9% for the villages) were observed in Group A of females, suggesting that many females in the towns are placed in the circumstances where difficult problems tend to crop up with respect to their matrimony or their sharing the same house with other members of their families. As regards clinical symptoms, it was found that there are many patients with severe auxiliary symptoms, such as delirium, hallucination and paranoid symptoms, in addition to advanced dementia.

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[in Japanese]

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On the basis of the statistical data of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry on “dekasegi” (Family members leaving home for temporary working) in 1958-67, the author analyzed the annual transition of “dekasegi.” 1. During the period of 1958 to 1967, the number of farmers engaged in “dekasegi” throughout the nation ranged from 200, 000 to 300, 000, and there were no significant fluctuations. When these workers are analyzed by sex, females engaged in “dekasegi” in 1967 accounted for about 8% of all the “dekasegi” workers, and there were signs for a drop in their number.
2. With respect to the types of industry in which they were employed during that period, their number in the construction industry was on the upturn and accounted for 6.5% of all the “dekasegi” farmers. Their employment in agriculture has continuously been on the downtown and dwindled to 2.8 percent in 1973.
3. As classified by economic blocs (Division of prefecture by characteristics of agricultural production or economic situation), it was recognized that the ratio of farmers engaged in “dekasegi” (ratio of temporary workers leaving home to total farm population of 15 of age) increased in the order of suburban areas, farm villages on the flatland, farm villages in the mountains, and mountain villages.
4. Of the farmers engaged in “dekasegi, ” there existed 15, 500 in the two years of 1963 and 1964 who did not intend to return to their home villages. This phenomenon is one of actors associmportant social factors associated with “dekasegi.”

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On the statistical data of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the author analyzed the status of “dekasegi” farm households as classified by regional patterns (Zengoku-chiiki-ruikei) and economic blocs (Keizai-chitai) and secured the following findings.
1. With the nation divided into seven regions in terms of regional patterns, the rate of “dekasegi” farm households is low in the industrial areas but high in the advanced farm areas centered around rice production, general areas centered around rice production, and isolated farm areas.
2. With the nation divided into regional patterns in terms of farm production and economic blocs, there were signs for a rise in the rate of “dekasegi” farm households in the order of suburban areas, farm villages on the flatland, farm villages in the mountains, and mountain villages. The lowest rate of “dekasegi” farm households was registered in the peripheries of major industrial cities, whereas mountain villages in secluded areas registered high percentages.
3. In the 27 areas classified by regional patterns and economic blocs, the correlation coefficients and regression lines of the rate of “dekasegi” farm houses (total number of “dekasegi” farm households/total number of farm households x 100), infant mortality, crude mortality and birth rate are as follows:
Infant mortality r=+0.7748 y =0.7781x-11.5637 Crude mortality r=+0.4680 y =1.7884x-9.0808 Birth rate r=-0.3807 y=-0.9969x+22.6291
The correlations of the rate of “dekasegi” farm households, infant mortality and crude mortality were minus. The fact that the correlations of the rate of “dekasegi” farm households and the infant mortality rate were as high as 0.7 indicates that “dekasegi” farm households are great in number in the areas where the health standards are low. From a sociomedical point of view, it follows that many “dekasegi” farm households exist in unhealthy areas. On the basis of this observation, the author has come to the conclusion that “dekasegi” is not a favorable social phenomenon.

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On the basis of the 1965 statistical data of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the author computed the rates of “dekasegi” farm households as classified by prefecture, agricultural region and economic bloc (Provided by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry), and this report is an attempt to introduce the conclusions drawn from the computation.
1. The rate of “dekasegi” farm households by prefecture is high in Aomori, Akita, Yamagata, Niigata and Kagoshima Prefectures, which were followed by Nagasaki and Hyogo Prefectures in terms of percentage. The rate was low in the prefectures which have major urban areas. In the economic blocs of Tohoku Region's three prefectures and Niigata Prefecture, the percentage was high.
2. The rate of “dekasegi” farm households by economic bloc rises in the order of suburban areas, farm villages on the flatland, farm villages in the mountains and mountain villages.
3. The correlation coefficient of the rate of “dekasegi” farm households and the infant mortality rate was in the neighborhood of +0.4.

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On the basis of the 1965 and 1975 statistical data of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the author analyzed in national and regional terms what changes took place during these ten years and came to the following general conclustion.
1. The numbers of “dekasegi” farm households and farmers conspicuously decreased from 1965 to 1975 in a national perspective. The number of “dekasegi” farm households which was registered at 382, 279 in 1965 dropped to 178, 000 in 1975. Analyzed in terms of prefectures, this phenomenon has resulted from a drastic drop in the number of “dekasegi” farm households in prefectures other than Akita and Aomori, where there have been proctically no fluctuations in the number of “dekasegi” farm households in the last 10 years.
2. The prefectures in which powerful measures for “dekasegi” farm households, judging from the 1975 new data, are Aomori, Akita, Iwate, Yamagata, Niigata and Kagoshima.
3. The rate of “farm households” at the prefectural level is not so high, to be sure, but the prefectures in which there exist special areas featuring high rates of “dekasegi” farm households have been identified. These prefectures are Hyogo, Miyazaki, Kumamoto, Nagasaki and Ehime Prefectures.
4. To decrease the number of “dekasegi” farm households, the author theoretically corroborated, on the basis of the conditions of “dekasegi” farm households in Shizuoka, Akita and Kagoshima Prefectures, that the prerequisite is to increase the number of constantly working farm households.

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Recently a deep concern has been shown for the decline of physical fitness of Japanese people. There are many studies on physical fitness of the common people but few on farmers in Japan. The purpose of this study was to take the steps towards establishing the physical fitness norms for Japanese farmers. The statistical analysis was conducted using the records on their physique and motor ability measured on 3, 452 persons aged 20-70, during 1972-1974 years, in the agricultural regions designated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
The results obtained were as follows:
1) In stature, the males were nearly equal to that of a standard from Japanese people while the female were slightly inferior. In weight, both males and females were inferior to that of the standard. This tendency is remarkable in the following order: mountain farmers>flatland farmers>suburban farmers. Farmers in Tohoku District were generally short of stature and broad of chest.
2) Farmers were inferior to that of the standard in foot-balance and side steps but were superior in push-ups and endurance walk, the capacities of which lower less with their ages than in the cases of other persons. This tendency is exhibited in the same order as mentioned in 1).
3) Since such tests involving pain as endurance walk have a problem as to their reliability, further investigation should be required.

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Statistical analyses on the superficial mycotic infection during one year (1975) were reported. 1828 patients visited our dermatologic department in the same period. The incidence of the superficial mycotic infection was 27.4% in total ; dermatophytosis of 20%, candidiasis of 6.5%, tinea vesicolor of 0.9%.
In dermatophytosis, tinea pedis and manus were seen most commonly, followed by tinea corporis, tinea cruris, tinea unguium. Each tinea capitis and tinea barbae was seen only one case.
Tinea pedis and tinea unguium are the commonest combinations.
In candidiasis, candidiasis in infants occupy 50% of total candidiasis, followed by intertriginous candidiasis, paronychia and onychia and interdigitale candidiasis.
These superficial mycotic infection were seen in summer more than in other seasons.
T. rubrum were isolated mostly on culture (105 cases, 95%) and T. mentagrophytes were only 3 cases (2.7%).

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