Meconium is changed from defoliated intestinal villi with apoptosis. A meconium corpuscle is a limited architecture in the meconium at the light microscopic level. In histological and immunohistochemical sections of the abdomen from 40 fetuses at 20–31 weeks of gestation, we found 12 fetuses with meconium and examined the architecture.A solid or loose meconium was seen depending on sites. The solid meconium in the colon and rectum contained numerous spherical or rugby ball-like corpuscles comprising of a core with tightly-packed atrophied cells and a laminar fibrous sheath.The solid meconium surrounded and incorporated villi that maintained the original architecture. The loose meconium was seen not only in the stomach and duodenum but also, depending on specimens, in the colon and rectum. It was composed of a large mucosal fold, a single small villus and/or fragmented epithelia. Notably, these mucosal tissues still contained chromogranin-positive gastrointestinal cells and cytokeratin-positive epithelia. A large ring-like meconium was composed of the entirely circular mucosa or epithelia that seemed to be detached along the muscularis mucosae or the basal lamina.A sheath-like fibrous structure in meconium seemed to originate from the lamina propria and basal lamina of villi. A defoliation of villi with apoptosis seemed difficult to explain a detachment of the entirely circular mucosa or epithelia in large fetuses examined. The latter event might require a specific mechanism such as an in utero intussusception in which a proximal side of the colon was invaginated into the distal lumen.

Neck epaxial muscles, which are differentiated for suspending the head, occupy a large space posterior to the cervical lordosis. Limited information exists regarding developmental process that determines the muscle fiber direction and bony attachment of neck epaxial muscles. We examined histological sections of 28 human fetuses aged approximately 7–18 weeks (crown-rump length, 20–150 mm). In place of the underdeveloped lordosis, the transverse process of cervical vertebrae was shifted anteriorly at the cervicothoracic junction. The semispinalis and longissimus were distinguished by the direction of muscle fibers connecting between the surface aponeurosis and transverse process. The semispinalis capitis and splenius capitis had a bulky anterior margin without bony attachments. The obliquus capitis inferior continued to both the rectus capitis posterior major and the semispinalis cervicis, but the obliquus capitis superior was consistently independent. Muscle attachments to the scapula were quite different from the final morphology: 1) the levator and rhomboidei usually extended inferiorly along the developing scapula beyond the inferior angle and 2) the splenius capitis or semispinalis cervicis rarely issued an aberrant bundle attaching to the scapula. The scaleni, rhomboidei, levator scapulae, iliocostalis and longissimus were arranged in parallel from the anteromedial to the posterolateral planes and together formed a thick oblique muscle bundle originating from the cervical transverse process and running toward the upper thoracic vertebra and ribcage. The transient oblique muscle bundle seen in early fetuses seemed to provide the so-called intermediate axial muscle between the epaxial-hypaxial muscles: a concept postulated in recent molecular neurology and embryology.

Background: This study aimed to clarify the association between the co-existence of possible sarcopenia (PS) and dysphagia in patients with acute stroke and the functional outcomes 12 months after stroke. Methods: This multicenter retrospective cohort study was conducted on patients with stroke admitted to two acute care hospitals in Japan between November 2020 and October 2023. PS was defined based on grip strength (males <28 kg, females <18 kg) and calf circumference (males <34 cm, females <33 cm) on admission. Dysphagia was defined as a Functional Oral Intake Scale score of less than 4. The outcome was defined as a composite of either poor functional outcome (modified Rankin Scale [mRS] score of 3–6) or failure to recover to the premorbid mRS at 12 months after stroke onset. Modified Poisson regression analysis was used to examine the association between the co-existence of PS and dysphagia and poor functional outcomes. Results: This study included 604 patients (median age 76 years; 367 men). Compared with the non-PS and non-dysphagia group, the PS and dysphagia group had a higher proportion of poor functional outcomes. Subsequently, modified Poisson regression analysis was performed. The interaction between PS and dysphagia was significantly associated with poor functional outcomes (risk ratio=4.348, 95% confidence interval 2.683–7.046). Conclusion In patients with acute stroke, the co-existence of PS and dysphagia was associated with poor functional outcomes 12 months after stroke. Future multicenter prospective interventional studies are required to clarify the effectiveness of multifaceted intervention programs in high-risk patients.

Background/Aims: To evaluate the quality of life (QOL) of patients with chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction (CIPO) before and after treatment. Methods: This study enrolled 50 adult patients diagnosed with CIPO at 4 institutions, of whom 42 underwent therapy.Patient background, body mass index, treatment, palliative care intervention, numerical rating scale for abdominal pain or bloating, the medical outcomes study 36-item short-form health survey (SF-36) and summary scores (physical component summary, mental component summary, and role/social component summary), Japanese version of the Patient Assessment of Constipation Quality of Life (JPAC-QOL) and subscales (physical discomfort, psychosocial discomfort, worries and concerns, and satisfaction), and Patient Assessment of Constipation Symptoms (PAC-SYM) and subscales (stool, rectal, and abdominal symptoms) were prospectively sampled and collected. Results: The patients (n = 50; 35 females and 15 males) had an average age of onset of 44.7 years and, body mass index of 17.3 kg/m², and 38 (76%) required palliative care intervention. Effective therapeutic interventions included intestinal sterilization (19/42), decompression therapy with percutaneous endoscopic gastrojejunostomy (PEG-J) (6/42), and dietary restriction (6/42). The numerical rating scale for abdominal distension and pain decreased significantly after treatment. All SF-36 summary scores showed improvements. The JPAC-QOL and PAC-SYM both showed improvement overall and in all subscales. Conclusions Patients with CIPO have a lower physical, psychological and social QOL, which is equivalent to or lower than that of adult patients with inflammatory bowel disease or psychiatric disorders. Sterilization of the intestinal tract and PEG-J decompression effectively improve the QOL of patients.

Objective: To identify effective strategies to provide high-quality palliative care in settings where palliative care specialists are scarce, particularly in Japan. Methods: A scoping review of literature (in English) was conducted using Arksey and O’Malley’s methodological framework. Electronic databases (MEDLINE, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Library) were searched and supplemented with a manual search of relevant journal articles. Results: Nine studies met our inclusion criteria. Four key strategies have emerged: (1) developing a video consultation system to improve the timeliness of care; (2) providing online consultations by specialists to support general practitioners; (3) training nurses to manage the palliative care process; and (4) transferring knowledge and information from experts to non-specialists. Conclusion: Based on these strategies, creating a system tailored to the specific needs and readiness of palliative care in Japan is necessary. The effectiveness of these strategies should be evaluated in future research.

Introduction: We aimed to evaluate the impact of lifestyle modifications on the risk of eradication failure in patients undergoing first-line therapy for Helicobacter pylori infection.Methods: A survey was conducted in a community pharmacy to assess changes in alcohol consumption, smoking, and high-fat diet intake before, during, and after first-line therapy for H. pylori infection in enrolled patients.Results: A total of 100 patients (response rate: 3.4%) were included in the analysis. Before therapy, 20 patients (20%) smoked, 35 patients (35%) consumed alcohol, and 91 patients (91%) had a high-fat diet. During therapy, the proportion of patients who changed their habits was 15.0% (3/20) for smoking, 71.4% (25/35) for alcohol consumption, and 28.6% (26/91) for high-fat diet. However, the continuation of these changes post-therapy was minimal.Conclusion: Among patients undergoing first-line therapy for H. pylori infection, lifestyle habits that increase the risk of eradication failure were prevalent, with many patients maintaining their habits during therapy except for alcohol consumption. These findings provide fundamental data for lifestyle counselling during eradication therapy.

Background: This study surveyed pharmacists registered with the Yamaguchi Prefectural Pharmacists Association to determine the key elements of tablet printing design that enhance visibility and distinguishability during dispensing.Objectives: The purpose of this study is to identify suitable design components for tablets that enhance visibility and distinguishability by utilizing text data.Methods: Given the high risk of medication errors due to similar-looking tablets, the study employed KH Coder for text mining analysis of free-text responses.Results: Results indicated that design elements such as "horizontal writing," "straight lines, " and "emphasis on characters" significantly improve visibility and distinguishability, particularly for similar-looking tablets. The findings from this study provide specific guidelines for optimal tablet design, aiming to improve pharmacists' efficiency and enhance medication safety.Conclusions: KH Coder proved to be a valuable tool for analyzing qualitative data in the medical field. While the study focused on pharmacists in Yamaguchi Prefecture, expanding the survey to a national scale is recommended to validate and generalize the findings. This research supports the development of standardized tablet designs that can minimize dispensing errors and ensure patient safety, highlighting the importance of effective tablet printing design in pharmaceutical practice.