[in Japanese]

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Objective: To examine the possibility of using myoinositol as a marker of glucose intolerance to screen individuals for a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT)
Methods: We measured urinary myoinositol enzymatically before and 2 h after a 75-g OGTT in 915 volunteers, who were classified according to the 1998 WHO criteria and divided into three groups based on fasting plasma glucose (FPG) levels which were as follows: 99 mg/dl; 100-125 mg/dl; and.126 mg/dl. Normal glucose tolerance (NGT) subjects with a 1 h plasma glucose ≥180 mg/dl were defined as preborderline (p-BD). We then compared Amyoinositol (ΔUMI: myoinositol/creatinine ratio 2 h after glucose loading - myoinositol/creatinine ratio before loading) in each group, with particular focus on the FPG 100-125 mg/dl group, to investigate relationships between glucose intolerance and ΔUMI.
Results: In the FPG 100-125 mg/dl group, using 10 mg/gCr as a tentative cut-off point for detecting glucose intolerance, ΔUMI was positive in 93% (37/40) of subjects with diabetes mellitus,68% (62/91) of subjects with impaired glucose tolerance,53% (25/47) of subjects with impaired fasting glucose,69% (18/26)of subjects who were p-BD, and 27% (37/137) of subjects with NGT.
Conclusions: These results show that ΔUMI can be used as a non-invasive, sensitive marker of glucose intolerance, and can be used to screen subjects for the 75-g OGTT as a secondary measure following FPG screening.

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Objective: High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and gamma glutamyltransferase (GGT) are proposed to be components of metabolic syndrome. Therefore, we studied optimal cut points of hs-CRP and GGT equivalent to metabolic syndrome among Japanese. Methods: Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves of hs-CRP and GGT for diagnosing revised NCEP metabolic syndrome for Japanese were studied. Spearman's correlation coefficients among components of metabolic syndrome, hs-CRP, and GGT, and medians of hs-CRP and GGT for 5 categories defined by the number of component of metabolic syndrome were calculated. Results: Area under ROC curve (AUC) of hs-CRP for metabolic syndrome were 0.73 in men and 0.72 in women. AUC of GGT for metabolic syndrome were 0.67 in men and 0.75 in women. Optimal cut points of hs-CRP for metabolic syndrome were 0.46 in men and 0.25 mg/L in women. Optimal cut points of GGT for metabolic syndrome were 40 U/L in men and 22 U/L in women. Conclusions: Above mentioned cut points of hs-CRP and GGT may be useful to estimate the metabolic risk of hs-CRP and GGT equivalent to metabolic syndrome among Japanese.

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Objective: To conduct a survey to determine the status of the introduction of the new guidelines in the revised version of “Evaluation of Health Check-up Results and Follow-up Guidance in Ningen Dock” in pulmonary function testing conducted at Japan Society of Ningen Dock member facilities. Methods: We conducted a questionnaire survey by mail of Japan Society of Ningen Dock member facilities twice in 2008 (in February and July) concerning forced expiratory volume in 1 second and forced vital capacity, parameters used in spirometry, and the timing of the change to the Japanese procedures for measuring them. The status of adoption of the new guidelines was also surveyed. Results: The recovery rates were 51.3% for the first time the questionnaire was sent out and 39.2% for the 2nd time. Adoption rates for the Japanese Respiratory Society's procedure for measuring forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV. ) were 27.0% and 34.6% for the 1st and 2nd surveys, respectively, showing that more than 60% of institutions were still using other procedures, even at the time of the 2nd survey. With regard to the timing of the change to the Japanese procedures, the response rate for “no schedule for change/no answer” was 58.0% and response rates regarding adoption status of the new guidelines were: new guidelines-38.0%, old guidelines - 56.8%and no answer -5.2%. Conclusion: These findings indicate that it is necessary for the Japanese Society of Ningen Dock to conduct educational programs to make facilities more familiar with the new guidelines and of the necessity of them introducing the Japanese measurement procedures.

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