The present study was attempted to examine whether the cold-induced vasodilation is affected by maturation and aging. Twelve prepubertal boys (10-11 yrs), 15 young men (18-26 yrs), and 8 older men (66-78 yrs) immersed their middle finger in ice-water for 15 min under air condition of 27°C and 40% RH. Before the immersion, no age-related differences were observed in skin temperature of middle finger (T_fin) . The time required for the first rise of T_fin after the immersion (TTR) was significantly longer in the older men than in the boys and young men. T_fin at the first rise after the immersion (TFR), highest value of Tfin after the first rise (HST) and the mean value of T_fin during the immersion (MST) were significantly lower in the boys than in the young men. The integral value of T_fin from the onset of cold-induced vasodilation to the end of the immersion (CIVD_index) was significantly lower in the boys and older men than in the young men. TTR, TFR, HST, MST, and CIVD_ifldex did not correlate significantly with maximal oxygen uptake, mean skinfold thicknesses at seven body sites, and length and girth of the middle finger. Oral temperature (Tor) did not change between before and after the immersion regardless of age, although the Tar in the boys was significantly higher than in the young and older men. There were no age differences in the relationship of thermal sensation or pain sensation and T_fin. These results suggest that boys and older men have inferior cold-induced vasodilation compared to young men, and that the mechanisms of inferior cold-induced vasodilation are different in these two groups.

Objectives: First steps to promote the proper use of medicines in remote islands and rural areas are as follows: (1) recognition of the profession of “pharmacist” from secondary-remote-island residents who do not have a pharmacy or drugstore or the opportunity for pharmacist contact and (2) an understanding by remote-island residents of the advantages of having a “family pharmacist.”
Methods: Repeated “medicine information and consultation sessions” for secondary-remote-island residents of Japan’s Nagasaki Prefecture were held.  Residents were then surveyed for changes in awareness of or demand for pharmacists and the nature of such changes.
Results: Before the information sessions, 29.7% of residents did not recognize the profession of pharmacy, but the extent of their recognition increased after information sessions were concluded.  They were asked “Who explains medicines in a way that is easy to understand ?”; more than half responded “doctors” before the information session, but after information sessions were concluded, those who said “pharmacists” increased.
Conclusion: Conducting “medicine information and consultation sessions” for residents of secondary-remote islands and rural areas enabled them to understand the profession of pharmacy.  The initiatives in the present study are first steps toward promoting proper use of medicines by residents of remote islands and rural areas who use “family pharmacies/pharmacists.”

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective analysis. PURPOSE: The present study aimed to investigate the features of low back pain (LBP) due to superior cluneal nerve (SCN) entrapment neuropathy (SCN-EN) using the Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ), and to analyze the differences between LBP due to SCN-EN and lumbar spinal canal stenosis (LSS). OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: The SCN is derived from the cutaneous branches of the dorsal rami of T11–L5 and passes through the thoracolumbar fascia. LBP due to SCN-EN is exacerbated by various types of lumbar movement, and its features remain to be fully elucidated, often resulting in the misdiagnosis of lumbar spine disorder. METHODS: The present study included 35 consecutive patients with SCN-EN treated via nerve blocks or surgical release between April 2016 and August 2017 (SCN-EN group; 16 men, 19 women; mean age, 65.5±17.0 years; age range, 19–89 years). During the same period, 33 patients were surgically treated with LSS (LSS group; 19 men, 14 women; mean age, 65.3±12.0 years; age range, 35–84 years). The characteristics of LBP were then compared between patients with SCN-EN and those with LSS using the RMDQ. RESULTS: The duration of disease was significantly longer in the SCN-EN group than in the LSS group (26.0 vs. 16.0 months, p=0.012). Median RMDQ scores were significantly higher in the SCN-EN group (13 points; interquartile range, 8–15 points) than in the LSS group (7 points; interquartile range, 4–9 points; p<0.001). For seven items (question number 1, 8, 11, and 20–23), the ratio of positive responses was higher in the SCN-EN group than in the LSS group. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with SCN-EN exhibit significantly higher RMDQ scores and greater levels of disability due to LBP than patients with LSS. The findings further demonstrate that SCN-EN may affect physical and psychological function.

The agenesis of the gonads and adrenal gland in revealed by knockout mouse studies strongly suggested a crucial role for Nr5a1 (SF-1 or Ad4BP) in organ development. In relation to these striking phenotypes, NR5A1/Nr5a1 has the potential to reprogram cells to steroidogenic cells, endow pluripotency, and regulate cell proliferation. However, due to limited knowledge regarding NR5A1 target genes, the mechanism by which NR5A1/Nr5a1 regulates these fundamental processes has remained unknown. Recently, newlyestablished technologies have enabled the identification of NR5A1 target genes related to multiple metabolic processes, as well as the aforementioned biological processes. Considering that active cellular processes are expected to be accompanied by active metabolism, NR5A1 may act as a key factor for processes such as cell differentiation, proliferation, and survival by coordinating these processes with cellular metabolism. A complete and definite picture of the cellular processes coordinated by NR5A1/Nr5a1 could be depicted by accumulating evidence of the potential target genes through whole genome studies.

We implemented a questionnaire survey targeting mothers who are in child care and had participated in consultations regarding drugs and diseases. We examined the future roles of community pharmacists by exploring the mothers’ concerns and, anxieties about child cares and their backgrounds, and their expectations for profession of community pharmacist. Mothers have listed anxiety and concerns of child care about “dermatitis such as rash and atopic eczema”; “food allergies”; “infectious diseases such as measles, chicken pox, and mumps”; and “side effects of vaccination”. In addition, most of them indicated their own concerns and anxiety about “solutions to children’s illnesses.” Despite their anxieties and concerns, however, approximately 60% of the mothers have never consulted with community pharmacists. Among them, approximately a half of them indicated the following three reasons why they have never consulted with pharmacists: “I have nothing to talk about,”, “I do not know what I should talk about,”, and “I was not sure if it was alright to talk about my concerns.”. From these results, we concluded that community pharmacists in the future should improve their communication skills and inform their availability to consult about medicine and disease to local residents.

Objective: There is little information on the effectiveness and safety of health foods for pregnant women. The purpose of this study was to analyze the risk of health food to pregnant women and fetuses from pharmaceutical interventions and clarify the problems for standardization of pharmaceutical management and guidance.Methods: Among 243 pregnant inpatients who received consultations from our pharmacists, 61 subjects were taking health food products were recruited from May 2015 to April 2017. We developed novel guidelines for the use of health food products for pregnant women, and used the guidelines to provide pharmaceutical interventions. Results of these interventions were reviewed retrospectively to identify issues associated with pharmaceutical management of the use of health food products.Results: Among 61 subjects, 10 (16%) received a total of 11 interventions for the use of health food products. Suggestions to discontinue the use of health food products were accepted by 9 subjects (82%). The majority of interventions (n=7, 64%) were related to therapeutic disadvantages of health food products, such as “bleeding complications during childbirth” and “interaction with other medicines”. Information on the number of weeks of pregnancy, drug history, and treatment status were used to trigger and determine appropriate pharmaceutical interventions.Conclusion: From the intervention cases, the potential disadvantages associated with the use of health foods were confirmed, and the risk status of pregnant women and fetuses associated with the use of health foods was clarified. It is necessary to intervene before embarking on using health foods, to make judgements based on risk assessment considering the number of weeks of pregnancy and patient background, and to provide accurate information to pregnant women. We anticipate that future studies will provide additional insights into the effects of health food intake on pregnant women, and that support systems for pregnant women will be established by medical professionals.

The aim of this study was to clarify the experience of recurrent/advanced cancer patients receiving outpatient cancer rehabilitation and evaluate true endpoints of cancer rehabilitation. The study was conducted by semi-structured interviews of 13 recurrent/advanced patients undergoing cancer rehabilitation during cancer chemotherapy. Six categories were extracted: [Finding the physical condition suitable for me] [Being unable to find movements that I can effectively utilize myself] [Being able to continue normal everyday life] [Showing people around me that I can still move] [Having fun actively moving my body] [Gives meaning to my present “living”]. Cancer rehabilitation is considered to give patients with recurrent/advanced cancer a chance to adapt to their present predicament by helping them re-establish the meaning, value, and objective of living. These results suggest that acquiring mastery can be a new endpoint of cancer rehabilitation.