Exploring interests: A pathway to ikigai and eudaimonic well-being among people with serious mental illness.

OBJECTIVE: Ikigai is a Japanese concept of a life worth living and related to eudaimonic well-being. Supporting the pursuit of ikigai is of central importance to recovery-oriented psychiatric rehabilitation for people with serious mental illnesses (SMI). While research suggests that work, leisure, and social relationships are potential sources of ikigai, people with SMI have restricted access to these as they encounter systemic barriers to participating in such activities. This study investigated how people with SMI in Japan pursued sources of ikigai in the face of barriers. METHODS: A total of 21 community-living individuals who had SMI and were recruited from community psychiatric rehabilitation service providers in Japan participated in the study. Photo-elicitation interviews were conducted, and the interview transcripts were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. RESULTS: Three themes were generated: (a) self-determination as a key to ikigai, (b) explorations needed to identify sources of ikigai, and (c) navigating the challenges to engage in the explorations. It was found that a self-determined activity tends to be a source of ikigai. However, participants had to grapple with challenges because identifying a source of ikigai involved the exploration of their personal interests, and the exploration could not be continued without managing the stigma of mental illness. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Results suggest that ikigai cannot be achieved instantly. To achieve eudaimonic well-being outcomes, psychiatric rehabilitation professionals should allow consumers to choose activities based on their personal interests and encourage them to try out various activities while they provide continued support to overcome stigma. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Malignant Phyllodes Tumor in a Pubertal Girl: A Report of a Case.

BACKGROUND: Malignant phyllodes tumor (MPT) is a rare breast disease that is extremely rare in children. A few cases of pediatric malignant phyllodes tumors have been reported, including some with a poor prognosis. CASE: A 14-year-old girl presented with a growing lump on her right breast. On the basis of imaging tests and a core needle biopsy, MPT was diagnosed, and right mastectomy was performed. The postoperative course was uneventful. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION: MPT is an infrequent disease in adult females and is extremely rare in pubertal females. It occasionally shows rapid growth, metastasis, and recurrence with a poor prognosis. Early surgical resection is necessary to obtain a cure. When a rapidly growing breast tumor is observed in pubertal females, MPT should be considered.

Senile Gluteal Dermatosis: An Underreported Condition in Elderly Patients.

Case 1: An 89-year-old obese Caucasian man with a history of coronary artery disease, hypothyroidism, and hyperlipidemia presented with herpes zoster on the lower back, and postherpetic neuralgia. The patient complained of significant pain and reported that he had been spending most of his day over the past few weeks in a seated position. (SKINmed. 2022;20:149-151).

Measuring Community Participation Among Japanese with Serious Mental Illnesses.

Community participation is associated with physical, cognitive, and mental health benefits for people with serious mental illnesses (SMI) and is recognized as a critical component of health functioning. Developing reliable measurement of participation in different cultural contexts and languages is important to expanding knowledge in this area. The aim of this study was to translate a psychometrically sound English-language community participation measure into Japanese and examine its test-reliability with a population of Japanese people with SMI. Self-reported data were gathered twice from 253 individuals within 48 h using the Temple University Community Participation-Japanese version (TUCP-J) at Type-B Continuous Employment Support Centers in Japan between November 2020 and February 2021. Participant responses were similar on four of the five participation subscales. At the item-level, participants provided consistent responses on 26 out of 27 of the items about amount of participation and had high item-level concordance (77-93%) on their ratings of the importance (Yes; No) of each participation activity and their reported participation sufficiency (Enough; Not Enough; Too Much: 73-88%). Overall, the results demonstrated strong evidence of test-retest reliability of the TUCP-J and identified a number of areas that were important to respondents, but where they were reporting not doing enough.

Study of Commodity VR for Computational Material Sciences.

Recent advancements in virtual reality (VR) devices and software environments make it possible to easily incorporate this technology for many applications, including computational materials science. For studying three-dimensional (3D) structure models and related chemical information, we focused on using a commodity VR device (VIVE) and an authoring tool (Unity). To visualize 3D chemical structures, disturbances like judder due to dropped frames should be eliminated from the VR experience to improve simulations. We propose a simple evaluation method that is straightforward for the nonexpert or novice VR user. We examine the major visualization representations including ball, ball and stick, and isosurface systems. For systematic benchmark measurements, a pendulum from the VR device was used to generate periodic oscillatory motion during measurements of a time series in frames per second (fps). For VIVE with a refresh rate of 90 Hz, judder occurred when less than 90 fps. We demonstrated the system size limitations for the results of molecular dynamics simulations of phase separation of ABA block copolymers and experimental observations of filler morphologies in rubber.

Unique Challenges of Atopy Treatment in the Correctional Facility System: A Case Study.

The United States houses one of the largest populations of incarcerated individuals in the world. By extension, the healthcare needs of incarcerated individuals are molded by the unique environmental and institutional circumstances that are less often a concern for the general nonincarcerated community. Conjugal visits pose a distinctive challenge for administration and physicians alike as this presents an intersection between the isolated, controlled correctional facility system and the broader, outside world. Here we present a case of severe urticaria and anaphylaxis associated with a patient's conjugal visits as well as the challenges in management and treatment of atopy relative to the correctional facility system.

Mammalian pigmentation is regulated by a distinct cAMP-dependent mechanism that controls melanosome pH.

The production of melanin increases skin pigmentation and reduces the risk of skin cancer. Melanin production depends on the pH of melanosomes, which are more acidic in lighter-skinned than in darker-skinned people. We showed that inhibition of soluble adenylyl cyclase (sAC) controlled pigmentation by increasing the pH of melanosomes both in cells and in vivo. Distinct from the canonical melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R)-dependent cAMP pathway that controls pigmentation by altering gene expression, we found that inhibition of sAC increased pigmentation by increasing the activity of tyrosinase, the rate-limiting enzyme in melanin synthesis, which is more active at basic pH. We demonstrated that the effect of sAC activity on pH and melanin production in human melanocytes depended on the skin color of the donor. Last, we identified sAC inhibitors as a new class of drugs that increase melanosome pH and pigmentation in vivo, suggesting that pharmacologic inhibition of this pathway may affect skin cancer risk or pigmentation conditions.

Review: the reemergence of brachytherapy as treatment for non-melanoma skin cancer.

Electronic brachytherapy (EBT) has seen a significant rise in use over the past few years in treating non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). However, the current literature in EBT remains scarce. Existing data on high-dose rate brachytherapy (HDR-BT) with surface applicators is often used to justify its efficacy and safety. In this review we study the two treatment modalities on their efficacy in treating NMSC and we explore the reasons behind the recent uprise in EBT. A literature review using PubMed was performed for articles published until January 2017 studying efficacy of HDR-BT and EBT for treating NMSC. HDR-BT demonstrated effective local control ranging from 96.2% to 100% up to 66 months of follow-up with acceptable cosmesis. For EBT, local control rates ranged from 90% to 100% with generally favorable tolerance and cosmesis outcome after roughly one year. While longer term data on EBT is needed, its short term efficacy shows promise as a possible alternative to surgery or other radiation therapy in a select group of patients.

How (not) to draw philosophical implications from the cognitive nature of concepts: the case of intentionality.

Philosophers have often appealed to intuitive judgments in various thought experiments to support or reject particular theses. Experimental philosophy is an emerging discipline that examines the cognitive nature of such intuitive judgments. In this paper, we assess the methodological and epistemological status of experimental philosophy. We focus on the Knobe effect, in which our intuitive judgment of the intentionality of an action seems to depend on the perceived moral status of that action. The debate on the philosophical implications of the Knobe effect has been framed in terms of the distinction between the competence and performance of the concept of intentionality. Some scholars seem to suggest that the Knobe effect reflects the competence (or otherwise, the performance error) of the concept of intentionality. However, we argue that these notions are purely functional and thus do not have philosophical implications, without assuming normativism, which we see as problematic in a psychological methodology. Finally, focusing on the gap between competence and rationality, we suggest future directions for experimental philosophy.

[Effectiveness of postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy using S-1 plus CDDP for type 4 gastric cancer].

BACKGROUND: Our aim was to evaluate postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy using S-1 plus cisplatin(S-1/CDDP)for type 4 gastric cancer. METHODS: We investigated 18 patients who had undergone curative operations for type 4 gastric cancer. They were classified into two groups of patients, one using S-1/CDDP(group A: 9)and one using S-1 alone(group B: 9), after surgery between 2000 and 2010. Median survival time(MST)and survival rates were reported retrospectively. Patients as- signed to group A were treated with the following regimen: S-1, 80-120mg/day(body surface area 1. 25m2>: 80mg/day, 1. 25-1. 5m2: 100mg/day, 1. 5m2<: 120mg), was administered for 21 consecutive days followed by a 14-day rest period, and CDDP, 60mg/m2, was administered on day 8 for 5 courses. After this course, S-1 80mg/m2 was given for 18 months. S- 1(80-120mg/day, body surface area 1. 25m2>: 80mg/day, 1. 25-1. 5m2: 100mg/day, 1. 5m2<: 120mg)was administered for 28 days followed by 14-day rest as one course. RESULTS: MST differed significantly between group A and group B (MST; group A: 1, 603 vs group B: 955 days). The overall survival rate at 5 years was 64. 8% in group A and 13% in group B, and the overall survival rate in group A was statistically better than that in group B(p=0. 02). CONCLUSION: Postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy using S-1/CDDP for resected type 4 gastric cancer contributes to prolonged life, compared with using S-1 in overall survival.

[Investigation of epiphora following S-1 therapy].

We report the frequency of lacrimal passage disorder and the outcomes of treatment. This retrospective study was performed on 55 cases that were treated with S-1 for at least 1 month. We asked patients about ocular symptoms. An ophthalmic surgeon examined all patients and diagnosed lacrimal passage disorder in 6 of 55 patients (12. 5%). The mean dose of S- 1 was 10, 300 mg, and the average period to onset of lacrimal passage disorder was 5. 7 months. The causes of epiphora included occlusion/stenosis of lacrimal canaliculus, occlusion of lacrimal puncta and stenosis of nasolacrimal duct. Lacrimal surgery was performed in all 6 patients and epiphora improved. Lacrimal passage disorder may result from systemic treatment of patients with S-1. Symptoms of lacrimal passage disorder improved with early detection and treatment by insertion of a silicone tube.

[Surgery for the chest wall tuberculous abscess; report of a case].

The patient was a 70-year-old woman who visited our hospital due to right chest pain. Chest computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed an abscess in the chest wall which was diagnosed as tuberculous abscess by a bacterial examination of needle aspiration. In spite of anti-tuberculosis chemotherapy, the abscess was ruptured on day 15 after starting treatment, and a radical resection of the abscess was performed after 10-days conservative treatment. Skin over the abscess and a part of right 7th and 8th rib were also resected. Postoperative anti-tuberculosis chemotherapy was added and no relapse was seen for 40 months postsurgery.