Nihon rinsho. Japanese journal of clinical medicine
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Recent observational longitudinal studies have indicated the association of cognition with lifestyle and lifestyle-related diseases, which can affect timely through the life as protective or risk factors. In particular, inappropriate lifestyle including diet and exercise induces lifestyle-related diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, obesity, cigarette smoking which promote cognitive decline and the occurrence of dementia as vascular risk factors. On the other hand, education during early life, occupational exposure during mid-life, and diet with green leafy vegetables and fish oil, and leisure activities including hobbies, social activities, and physical activities during later life could maintain or accelerate the cognitive reserve function. On the basis of modification of lifestyle and management of lifestyle-related diseases, therefore, we should prevent cognitive decline and the occurrence of dementia to achieve healthy aging society.
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Congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (CCHS) is characterized by a failure of the automatic control of breathing during sleep, and is caused by the dominant PHOX2B mutation. PHOX2B encodes a highly conserved homeobox transcription factor with two short polyalanine tracts. ⋯ Molecular analysis can provide the definite diagnosis and clinically useful information. Model mouse experiments and MRI study of the patients will contribute to understanding the pathogenesis and development of new treatment strategy.
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"Indium lung" is a new occupational lung disease. The global demand for indium, the major material used in manufacturing flat-screen display panels, has skyrocketed since the 1990s (Japan comprises 85% of the worldwide demand). ⋯ Indium lung has been described as interstitial pneumonia, pneumothorax, emphysema, and PAP. In 2013, The Japan Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare issued an "Ordinance on the Prevention of Hazards Due to Specified Chemical Substances" requiring employers to provide regular health checks for employees and measurements of work environment concentrations of respirable indium dust.
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The radioactive materials spread by the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) accident in March, 2011 caused NPP workers to be exposed to radiation above ordinance limits. The number of workers exposed to radiation within ordinance limits is increasing. Decontamination began at many places in Fukushima, although new laws were enforced in the decontamination work, in the current situation, medical examinations for radiation are limited due to a shortage of doctors. In this paper, I introduce the ordinances on the prevention of ionizing radiation hazards and the revised points about radiation exposure doses of the NPP workers, as well as the new ordinance for decontamination.
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There are several molecular target therapeutic drugs for colorectal cancer which are used in daily medical practice in Japan. One is bevacizumab which is anti-VEGF antibody, and another is cetuximab and panitumumab which are anti-EGFR antibodies. ⋯ These drugs are under consideration to differentiate the use not only from the characteristic of the drugs, but also from the pathological condition of the tumor. In this report, we will show the latest findings and the use of each drugs.