In order to clarify why orthopedic complaints such as lumbago are ameliorated by hot-spring bathing, serum levels of sialic acid and fucose, which form glycoconjugates and are markers of connective tissue metabolism, were measured before and after each hot-spring bathing. No changes were observed in serum sialic acid for persons who took hot-spring bathing more than three times per day for 10 days. However, many of them showed a decreasing tendency in serum fucose level after bathing. Although it is not clear why this tendency occurs, it strongly suggests that hot-spring bathing influences on connective tissue metabolism.

Although it is well known that orthopedic complaints such as lumbago and shoulder pain can be reduced by hot spring bathing, the mechanism of such reduction is not yet fully known. Therefore, to clarify the mechanism, how the metabolism of glycosaminoglycans, which form connective tissue of articulations and cartilage, changes during hot spring bathing was investigated. Urine was sampled from those visitors at a hot spring who have orthopedic complaints such as lumbago but with no internal disease immediately before the session of hot spring bathing and at intervals of 1 week for a period of 5 week after starting hot spring bathing. The glycosaminoglycan fractions were separated from urine using the cetylpyridinium chloride precipitation and ethanol precipitation methods. Uronic acid contents were then estimated by the carbazole reaction method. The glycosaminoglycan levels in urine increased temporarily one week after starting hot spring bathing, then decreased to the level before starting bathing. The results of investigations using two-dimensional electrophoresis on cellulose acetate membranes revealed that chondroitin and chondroitin sulfate increased one week after beginning hot spring bathing. Because chondoritin is a progressive degradation product of chondroitin sulfate, the increase in chondroitin means that the metabolism of the chondroitin sulfate in the connective tissue was temporarily accelerated by hot spring bathing and was reflected as a reduction in complaints.

It is well known that gynecological complaints are ameliorated by hot spring bathing. We therefore investigated the changes in urinary mucin excretion before and after 14 days of daily hot spring bathing in order to clarify the relationship between hot spring bathing and complaint amelioration. Urine was collected from 28 female adults (64.3±7.0 years old) before and after the 14 days of hot spring bathing. Urinary mucins containing sialoglycopeptides and sulfated glycopeptides were separated from the urine using the ethanol and cetylpyridinium chloride precipitation methods, then indentified with two-dimensional electrophoresis on cellulose acetate membranes.
After the removal of glycosaminoglycan contamination by glycosaminoglycan-degrading enzymes, mucin amounts were determined by the phenol-sulfuric acid method. The results showed that the levels of both sialoglycopeptides and sulfated glycopeptides increased after 2 weeks of bathing. The level of urinary mucin, which is synthesized and excreted from the epithelial cells, increased as a result of hot-spring bathing. Therefore, it is highly likely that the amelioration of gynecological complaints of females is related to the chages in urinary mucin excretion brought about by hot spring bathing.

Cystadenoma is an uncommon benign epithelial neoplasm. Cystadenoma usually occurs on the palatal and buccal mucosa, but is less commonly found in the retromolar regions.A 43-year-old male patient noticed a swelling on his gingiva distal to the right mandibular second molar. Physical examination showed a diffuse poorly circumscribed swelling extending from the lingual gingiva distal to the right mandibular second molar to the floor of the mouth and pharynx. The tumor size was 20 x 27 mm. The surface mucosa was purply-blue in parts. About 4 ml of pale yellow serous fluid was aspirated. The tumor was surrounded by a capsule and was excised successfully above the periosteum, incorporating a 2 mm safety margin including the surface mucosa. The tumor consisted of a fibrous capsule with multiple cystic cavities of various sizes. The cysts were lined by a layer of columnar epithelium, with intracystic papillary proliferation in some areas. No cytologic atypia or invasion of the surrounding tissues were observed.There is no evidence of recurrence ten years after excision, suggesting that complete excision is sufficient treatment in such cases.

We examined the relationship between masticatory ability and bone mineral density (BMD) and the role of muscle strength in those relationships in 156 female university students. Masticatory ability was assessed using a color-changeable chewing gum method. The BMD of the calcaneus was measured using quantitative ultrasonography and represented by a T-score, the standard deviation (SD) from the mean BMD of young adults. Body composition, grip strength, physical activity level, and daily nutrient intake were also assessed. Osteopenia, defined as the T-score < ‒1.0 SD, was present in 43 participants (27.6%). There was no significant relationship between masticatory ability (ΔE) and T-score in all participants. In participants with normal BMD (T-score ≧ ‒1.0 SD: the normal BMD group), masticatory ability significantly correlated to BMD (r = 0.289, p = 0.002). There was significant correlation between ΔE and grip strength neither in all participants nor in either group, although the grip strength in the normal BMD group was greater than that in the participants with osteopenia (the low BMD group) (p = 0.039). Physical activity level was positively correlated to the total daily energy intake (r = 0.193, p = 0.041) only in the normal BMD group. The present results suggest that masticatory ability is associated with BMD in young females with normal BMD, but the role of muscle strength in those relationships remains unclear. Meanwhile, there was no relationship between masticatory ability and BMD in young individuals with lower BMD.

In 1952, the Japanese Society for Hygiene had once passed a resolution at its 22nd symposium on population control, recommending the suppression of population growth based on the idea of cultivating a healthier population in the area of eugenics. Over half a century has now passed since this recommendation; Japan is witnessing an aging of the population (it is estimated that over 65-year-olds made up 27.7% of the population in 2017) and a decline in the birth rate (total fertility rate 1.43 births per woman in 2017) at a rate that is unparalleled in the world; Japan is faced with a "super-aging" society with low birth rate. In 2017, the Society passed a resolution to encourage all scientists to engage in academic researches to address the issue of the declining birth rate that Japan is currently facing. In this commentary, the Society hereby declares that the entire text of the 1952 proposal is revoked and the ideas relating to eugenics is rejected. Since the Society has set up a working group on the issue in 2016, there have been three symposiums, and working group committee members began publishing a series of articles in the Society's Japanese language journal. This commentary primarily provides an overview of the findings from the published articles, which will form the scientific basis for the Society's declaration. The areas we covered here included the following: (1) improving the social and work environment to balance between the personal and professional life; (2) proactive education on reproductive health; (3) children's health begins with nutritional management in women of reproductive age; (4) workplace environment and occupational health; (5) workplace measures to counter the declining birth rate; (6) research into the effect of environmental chemicals on sexual maturity, reproductive function, and the children of next generation; and (7) comprehensive research into the relationship among contemporary society, parental stress, and healthy child-rearing. Based on the seven topics, we will set out a declaration to address Japan's aging society with low birth rate.
Aging ; Birth Rate ; trends ; Child ; Child Health ; Environmental Exposure ; adverse effects ; prevention & control ; Female ; Health Planning Guidelines ; Humans ; Japan ; epidemiology ; Male ; Occupational Health ; Reproductive Health ; education ; Research Design ; standards ; Societies, Scientific ; organization & administration ; Stress, Psychological ; prevention & control ; Women's Health