Dysmenorrhea among Japanese women.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the epidemiology of dysmenorrhea in Japanese women of menstrual age. METHODS: A prospective cohort study was conducted using a health diary in a sample representative of Japanese women. Information on health care use was also collected. RESULTS: Among 823 enrolled participants (age range, 18-51 years), dysmenorrhea (mean duration 1.75 days; range 1-5 days) was reported in 15.8% (95% CI, 13.3-18.3) during the 1-month study period. Common associated symptoms included headache (10.77%), back pain (6.92%), and fatigue (5.38%). No participant with dysmenorrhea visited a physician, while 51.5% of the women used self-medication, and 7.7% used complementary/alternative medicine. CONCLUSION: Dysmenorrhea is common in Japanese women. In our study, about half used self-medication, while some preferred complementary/alternative medicine. Dysmenorrhea is significantly associated with younger age and employment status.

The influence of meteorological factors on the occurrence of trauma and motor vehicle collisions in Tokyo.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have suggested a possible association between meteorological factors and the occurrence of trauma, but with conflicting results. This study investigated the relation of the occurrence of trauma with meteorological factors, including barometric pressure, ambient temperature, relative humidity and rainfall. METHODS: Hourly data were collected on traumatic injuries through ambulance transport records of the Tokyo Fire Department from 1 January to 31 December 2005. Hourly meteorological data for Tokyo were also collected from the Japan Meteorological Agency during the same period. A time-series analysis was performed using an autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model to control for autocorrelations in time-series data. RESULTS: Of a total of 643,849 patients who were transported to hospitals by ambulance, there were 226,339 trauma patients, including 94,916 patients from motor vehicle collisions (42% of all trauma patients). Based on the ARIMA model, higher temperature (p<0.001), greater rainfall (p<0.05) and holidays (p<0.001) were significantly associated with the occurrence of trauma. These factors were also significantly associated with the occurrence of motor vehicle collisions. Barometric pressure and humidity were not associated with the occurrence of trauma. CONCLUSIONS: This population-based study shows that, in addition to high temperature, rainfall and holidays are associated with the occurrence of trauma including motor vehicle collisions.

Temporal bone findings in keratitis, ichthyosis, and deafness syndrome. Case report.

In 1981, the term KID syndrome was suggested for patients with congenital ichthyosis associated with deafness and keratitis. We had a chance to examine the temporal bone of an infant with this syndrome. This patient showed no auditory brain stem response in either ear. Temporal bone studies revealed cochleosaccular abnormality. These findings are offered as a possible explanation for the patient's deafness. The pathologic inner ear findings of congenital deafness syndromes associated with ichthyosis have been heretofore reported in Refsum's syndrome and in a case with universal alopecia. In these cases, the temporal bone pathologic findings were a result of cochleosaccular abnormality. From our case and previous reports, it is suggested that the deafness associated with congenital ichthyosis might be the result of cochleosaccular abnormality.

Metal contents in Porites corals: Anthropogenic input of river run-off into a coral reef from an urbanized area, Okinawa.

In order to monitor pollutants from urban areas to coral reefs, metal contents in Porites coral samples collected from the Hija River mouth and at nearby sites from the estuary were analyzed. The corals were cleaned by oxidative and reductive treatments to effectively eliminate detritus and organic materials. Metal-to-calcium (Me/Ca) ratios in the samples were determined by ICP-MS. Filtered samples of river water were also measured similarly for metal concentrations. The extent of anthropogenic contribution by riverine input was assessed by comparing the Me/Ca values in corals to those of Rukan-sho, an unpolluted coral reef. High riverine inputs of Mn, Cd, Zn and Ag were observed from Me/Ca values in the coral samples. Manganese in the coral samples showed strong dependence on salinity, varying inversely to the distance from terrestrial sources. Considering a lead background of 25.0 nmol/mol measured in the Rukan-sho corals, Pb/Ca in corals of the Hija River estuary that are two and three times higher may indicate lead enrichment in the river mouth. Because Pb is only moderately high in the Hija River water compared to its concentration in surface seawater, lead may have accumulated in the estuarine water and sediments, resulting in an elevated concentration of lead available for coral uptake.

PDA usage by Japanese resident physicians is low: a cross-sectional survey.

OBJECTIVES: Personal digital assistants (PDAs) are in widespread use by resident physicians in many countries, reaching as high as 95% in some reports. Uses are varied and include clinical decision support and support of evidence-based practice. Utilization by resident doctors in Japan has not been characterized. This study was conducted to determine practice patterns of PDA use by Japanese resident physicians. METHODS: A nationwide cohort survey study was distributed to all 1070 residency teaching programs in Japan. The survey included questions pertaining to use of PDAs in clinical practice. RESULTS: 1124 surveys were returned (response rate of approximately 75%). 297 (30.7%) respondents reported currently using PDAs, while 971 (86.4%) reported having used a PDA in the past. PDA users were more likely to be male (p <0.05), but no other significant differences were found when examining the following variables: age, training site (university hospital versus community teaching hospital), satisfaction with existing information technology access. CONCLUSIONS: Use of PDAs among Japanese resident physicians is much lower than their counterparts in other countries. In light of this, further research on patient outcomes in Japan and the impact of PDA usage on patient outcomes is urgently needed. If demonstrated to improve outcomes, barriers to adoption need to be identified and overcome.