An arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is widely used as the first choice for vascular access (VA) in maintenance hemodialysis patients. However, complications such as stenosis and occlusion have become significant issues due to the prolonged duration of dialysis treatment and the aging of patients, necessitating regular VA assessment and appropriate management. Ultrasonography is a simple, non-invasive method for VA evaluation;however, the images obtained are limited to two-dimensional information, making it difficult to accurately identify the spatial structure of the VA. In this study, we demonstrated the three-dimensional mapping of the VA using an existing ultrasound diagnostic system. We developed a system in which an ultrasound probe is mounted on a uniaxial movable stage, enabling the acquisition ultrasound cross-sectional images along the long axis of the AVF. The acquired images were processed using threshold-based image processing to extract the intravascular lumen region, which was then combined with stage coordinates to generate 3D point-cloud data. The 3D VA map constructed from measurements of AVF in maintenance hemodialysis patients revealed that the minimum cross-sectional area of the cephalic vein was 6.60mm² at z＝60mm. Furthermore, the histogram of differences between the reconstructed point cloud and the manual segmentation based theoretical point cloud showed mean ± standard deviation errors of －0.04 ± 0.61 mm, －0.04 ± 0.66 mm, and 0.01 ± 0.36 mm along the x, y, and z axes, respectively, indicating good agreement. This study demonstrates that 3D VA mapping using ultrasonography is an effective method for accurately visualizing and quantitatively assessing the spatial structure and stenosis of the VA.

Calcification of the coronary artery significantly impacts percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) success and long-term outcomes. This study developed a novel quadrant calcium score (QCS) using optical coherence tomography (OCT) to comprehensively assess the calcification distribution and eccentricity. By analyzing four-quadrant coronary imaging，researchers found that calcification predominantly localizes in single or two quadrants (76.7%) , with high eccentricity in 46.7% of cases. The research revealed a strong negative correlation between the eccentricity index and stent expansion (r＝−0.66) . Multi-quadrant highly eccentric calcification emerged as an independent predictor of stent expansion failure (OR 3.2, 95% CI:1.1-9.4) . The newly developed QCS demonstrated superior discriminative performance compared to conventional assessment methods. This quadrant analysis approach enables a more accurate prediction of stent expansion challenges and supports personalized treatment strategy selection, potentially improving PCI procedural outcomes and patient prognosis.

In care facilities, continuous, non-contact measurement of respiratory rate is crucial for early response to sudden health deterioration in residents. However, it is challenging with traditional non-contact respiratory rate measurement systems on beds to accurately measure respiratory rates when residents change position or posture significantly. To address this issue, this study proposes a method using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to extract features of center-of-gravity fluctuations influenced by respiration. This approach enables the development of a system that can stably measure respiratory rates in a non-contact manner, even in situations where the resident’s posture changes significantly, such as during turning movements.

This article summarizes the educational lecture presented at the 2025 Annual Symposium of the Japanese Society for Medical and Biological Engineering. During the symposium, we held a panel discussion on peer review and editorial processes for submitted manuscripts. The panel included editors-in-chief (EiCs) from our society’s journal, as well as early-career researchers and graduate students. During the session, the EiCs outlined the entire publication workflow, from initial submission to peer review to final acceptance. The EiCs also reported submission trends for symposium papers and explained how to write manuscripts that are more likely to be accepted. Participants, including young researchers, graduate students, and audience members, asked questions about completing the review form, selecting reviewers, and writing papers that ensure the reproducibility of research methods. The EiCs responded to these questions during an interactive discussion.