Medical students' impression of a generalist in Japan: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Despite the increasing global demand, few medical students aspire to become generalists. To address this shortage, we investigated medical students' impressions of generalists in Japan. Methods: This cross-sectional study used a web-based questionnaire from a previous study. The participants chose the impression of a generalist from four categories based on the previous report: family physician, hospital family physician, hospitalist, and general internal medicine. Results: Medical students' impressions were as follows: family physicians (32%), hospitalists (28%), general internal medicine staff (20%), and hospital family physicians (18%). Students considered reasonable working hours, research opportunities, a clinical clerkship in generalist medicine, and information from university faculty as essential for making career choices. Conclusions: The study demonstrated that the number of Japanese medical students who considered generalists to be family physicians/hospital family physicians and the number of those who considered generalists to be hospitalists/general internal medicine were almost equal. To increase the number of medical students who consider and choose to become generalists, understanding their impressions of generalist practice and their needs regarding work settings in that role is crucial.

Japanese primary care physicians' postpartum mental health care: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Postpartum mental health care is a public health priority requiring interprofessional and interorganizational collaboration. Primary care physicians (PCPs) have the potential to play an essential role in facilitating access to health care and providing comprehensive and coordinated care for postpartum mental health problems. In Japan, however, there are no previous studies on the extent to which PCPs are involved in postpartum mental health care. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the practices and experiences of Japanese PCPs in providing such care. Methods: This study presents a subset of the findings from a cross-sectional study using an online questionnaire on postpartum care among Japanese PCPs. We employed descriptive analysis to examine their practices and experiences in providing general and postpartum mental health care. Results: We received 339 valid responses from 5811 PCPs. The median proportion of the outpatients with mental health problems that PCPs regularly saw was 15%. Approximately two out of three PCPs (68.7%) reported routinely performing screening for depression and anxiety. Seventy-six percent of PCPs had the opportunity to provide care for postpartum women. Approximately one in two PCPs (47.8%) had managed cases of postpartum mental health problems and collaborated with various professionals and resources to provide care. Conclusions: The majority of Japanese PCP participants in the study provide mental health care and have managed cases of postpartum mental health problems, collaborating with various health professionals.

Patient experiences in primary care do not differ according to rurality: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Living in rural areas is a major contributor of health inequity. Tackling health inequity is important for primary care physicians. Therefore, it is important to compare the quality of primary care between rural and urban areas. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the association between rurality and patient experience (PX) in Japan using validated measures. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted using online surveys. Participants were selected using a stratified random sample based on sex and age. The Japanese version of the Person-Centered Primary Care Measure (PCPCM) was used as an indicator of PX. We used the Rurality Index for Japan (RIJ) to measure rurality. Furthermore, we used multivariate linear regression analysis to examine the relationship between the RIJ and PCPCM after adjusting for confounders. RESULTS: Of the 1112 eligible participants, 800 responded to the survey (response rate:71.9%). The mean PCPCM scores were 2.46 (standard deviation: 0.73) and median RIJ was 15 (interquartile range: 6-33). The crude and adjusted coefficients of rurality were - 0.02 (- 0.006-0.001, p = 0.114) and - 0.02 (- 0.005-0.001), respectively, demonstrating that rurality was not significantly associated with the total PCPCM score. Subgroup analyses were similar to the main analyses. CONCLUSION: We found that PX in primary care did not differ by rurality in the general Japanese population.

Analysis of in-hospital deaths in patients with critical limb ischemia necessitating invasive treatments: based on a Japanese nationwide database.

Critical limb ischemia (CLI) is associated with systemic cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular diseases. Treatments primarily targeting limb-related outcomes may not improve overall life prognosis. We aimed to describe in-hospital mortality and the underlying etiologies in Japanese patients with CLI. We analyzed the Diagnosis Procedure Combination (DPC) database from approximately 1200 Japanese acute-care hospitals between April 2018 and March 2020. The definition of patients with CLI was based on the diagnostic codes listed as the most resource-intensive diagnosis and information regarding invasive procedures (endovascular treatment, bypass, or amputation). The DPC database provides information on whether in-hospital death was caused by the most resource-intensive diagnosis. Among 15,228 distinct patients with CLI, we identified 18,970 records, including 5,378 amputations. In-hospital death occurred in 1238 (6.5%) patients. Among them, 811 (65.5%) were due to causes unrelated to CLI. In patients who underwent amputation (n = 5378), causes unrelated to CLI accounted for 70.0% of in-hospital deaths, whereas among patients who did not undergo amputation (n = 13,592), this proportion was 60.1%. When compared to patients who died due to causes related to CLI, the prevalence of male patients was higher (62.6% vs 52.7%, p = 0.001), and amputation was more frequently performed (58.0% vs 47.1%, p < 0.001) in those who died due to causes unrelated to CLI. The majority of in-hospital deaths among patients with CLI necessitating endovascular treatment, bypass, or amputation were attributable to factors unrelated to the primary condition of CLI. Managing systemic cardiovascular and non-cardiovascular diseases beyond the affected limb is crucial to improve the prognosis of these patients.

In-Hospital Mortality in Patients With Cardiogenic Shock Requiring Veno-Arterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation With Concomitant Use of Impella vs. Intra-Aortic Balloon Pump　- A Retrospective Cohort Study Using a Japanese Claims-Based Database.

BACKGROUND: Patients with refractory cardiogenic shock (CS) necessitating peripheral veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) often require an intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) or Impella for unloading; however, comparative effectiveness data are currently lacking.Methods and Results: Using Diagnosis Procedure Combination data from approximately 1,200 Japanese acute care hospitals (April 2018-March 2022), we identified 940 patients aged ≥18 years with CS necessitating peripheral VA-ECMO along with IABP (ECMO-IABP; n=801) or Impella (ECPella; n=139) within 48 h of admission. Propensity score matching (126 pairs) indicated comparable in-hospital mortality between the ECPella and ECMO-IABP groups (50.8% vs. 50.0%, respectively; P=1.000). However, the ECPella cohort was on mechanical ventilator support for longer (median [interquartile range] 11.5 [5.0-20.8] vs. 9.0 [4.0-16.8] days; P=0.008) and had a longer hospital stay (median [interquartile range] 32.5 [12.0-59.0] vs. 23.0 [6.3-43.0] days; P=0.017) than the ECMO-IABP cohort. In addition, medical costs were higher for the ECPella than ECMO-IABP group (median [interquartile range] 9.09 [7.20-12.20] vs. 5.23 [3.41-7.00] million Japanese yen; P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our nationwide study could not demonstrate compelling evidence to support the superior efficacy of Impella over IABP in reducing in-hospital mortality among patients with CS necessitating VA-ECMO. Further investigations are imperative to determine the clinical situations in which the potential effect of Impella can be maximized.

Primary care physicians working in rural areas provide a broader scope of practice: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Scope of practice (SoP) is an important factor for primary care physicians (PCPs). One of the strong determinants of SoP is rurality. Although Japan has several rural areas, the SoP in rural areas and the effect of rurality on SoP have not been investigated. This study aimed to describe SoP in Japanese primary care settings and examine the association between rurality and SoP. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included PCPs in Japan. The participants were randomly sampled from the mailing list of the Japan Primary Care Association. The Scope of Practice Inventory (SPI) and Scope of Practice for Primary Care (SP4PC) were used as indicators of SoP. The Rurality Index for Japan (RIJ) was used for rurality. This study compared the number of items of SPI (total score, inpatient care, urgent care and ambulatory care) and SP4PC experienced by > 80% of all PCPs in the most urban (RIJ:1-10) and rural areas (RIJ: 91-100). A multivariable linear regression analysis was also performed to examine the relationship between the RIJ and SPI/SP4PC. RESULTS: Of 1,000 potential participants, 299 physicians responded to the survey (response rate: 29.9%). PCPs in the most rural areas experienced a greater number of items in the inpatientl/urgent care domains of the SPI and SP4PC than those in the most urban areas. The RIJ was the only common factor for a broader SoP in both the SPI and SP4C models. The coefficients of SoP were 0.09 (95% confidence interval: 0.03-0.16) in the SPI model and 0.017 (0.005-0.03) in the SP4PC model. CONCLUSION: Rurality was considerably associated with SoP. The findings of this study will be helpful in understanding the SoP on rural and urban areas.

Discrepancy between Caregivers' Reports and Physicians' Evaluation of Causative Foods in Food Protein-Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome in Japan: The Japan Environment and Children's Study.

INTRODUCTION: Food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES) is a form of non-IgE-mediated gastrointestinal food allergy. FPIES is considered a rare food allergy disorder and is often under-recognized. Therefore, clinicians should have a better understanding of its manifestations and maintain a high index of suspicion for a correct diagnosis. To this end, information about differences in the characteristics of caregiver-reported and physician-diagnosed FPIES is important. METHODS: The present, national, multicentric, prospective birth cohort study, called the Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS), enrolled a general population of 104,062 fetal records. The characteristics of FPIES in 1.5-year-old children were categorized as cases reported by caregivers or as those diagnosed by a physician using questionnaire data. RESULTS: The prevalence of caregiver-reported and physician-diagnosed FPIES cases was 0.69% and 0.06%, respectively. Among the former, the most common causative food was hen's egg (HE), and the second most common causative food was cow's milk (CM) (51.0% and 17.1% of patients responded to HE and CM, which accounted for 46% and 15% of all the causative foods, respectively). Conversely, among the physician-diagnosed cases, the most common causative food was CM followed by HE (57.7% and 36.5% of patients responded to CM and HE, which accounted for 46% and 29% of all the causative foods, respectively). CM accounted for a significantly higher proportion of causative foods in physician-diagnosed FPIES while HE accounted for a significantly higher proportion of caregiver-reported FPIES (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: A discrepancy was found in reports of the most common causative food between caregiver-reported and physician-diagnosed cases of FPIES.

In-Hospital Death and End-of-Life Status Among Patients With Adult Congenital Heart Disease　- A Retrospective Study Using the JROAD-DPC Database in Japan.

BACKGROUND: The end-of-life (EOL) status, including age at death and treatment details, of patients with adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) remains unclear. This study investigated the EOL status of patients with ACHD using a nationwide Japanese database.Methods and Results: Data on the last hospitalization of 26,438 patients with ACHD aged ≥15 years, admitted between 2013 and 2017, were included. Disease complexity (simple, moderate, or great) was classified using International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision codes. Of the 853 deaths, 831 patients with classifiable disease complexity were evaluated for EOL status. The median age at death of patients in the simple, moderate, and great disease complexity groups was 77.0, 66.5, and 39.0 years , respectively. The treatments administered before death to patients in the simple, moderate, and great complexity groups included cardiopulmonary resuscitation (30.1%, 35.7%, and 41.9%, respectively), percutaneous cardiopulmonary support (7.2%, 16.5%, and 16.3%, respectively), and mechanical ventilation (58.7%, 72.2%, and 75.6%, respectively). Overall, 70% of patients died outside of specialized facilities, with >25% dying after ≥31 days of hospitalization. CONCLUSIONS: Nationwide data showed that patients with ACHD with greater disease complexity died at a younger age and underwent more invasive treatments before death, with many dying after ≥1 month of hospitalization. Discussing EOL options with patients at the appropriate time is important, particularly for patients with greater disease complexity.

Hydrostatic pressure under hypoxia facilitates fabrication of tissue-engineered vascular grafts derived from human vascular smooth muscle cells in vitro.

Biologically compatible vascular grafts are urgently required. The scaffoldless multi-layered vascular wall is considered to offer theoretical advantages, such as facilitating cells to form cell-cell and cell-matrix junctions and natural extracellular matrix networks. Simple methods are desired for fabricating physiological scaffoldless tissue-engineered vascular grafts. Here, we showed that periodic hydrostatic pressurization under hypoxia (HP/HYP) facilitated the fabrication of multi-layered tunica media entirely from human vascular smooth muscle cells. Compared with normoxic atmospheric pressure, HP/HYP increased expression of N-myc downstream-regulated 1 (NDRG1) and the collagen-cross-linking enzyme lysyl oxidase in human umbilical artery smooth muscle cells. HP/HYP increased N-cadherin-mediated cell-cell adhesion via NDRG1, cell-matrix interaction (i.e., clustering of integrin α5ß1 and fibronectin), and collagen fibrils. We then fabricated vascular grafts using HP/HYP during repeated cell seeding and obtained 10-layered smooth muscle grafts with tensile rupture strength of 0.218-0.396 MPa within 5 weeks. Implanted grafts into the rat aorta were endothelialized after 1 week and patent after 5 months, at which time most implanted cells had been replaced by recipient-derived cells. These results suggest that HP/HYP enables fabrication of scaffoldless human vascular mimetics that have a spatial arrangement of cells and matrices, providing potential clinical applications for cardiovascular diseases. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: Tissue-engineered vascular grafts (TEVGs) are theoretically more biocompatible than prosthetic materials in terms of mechanical properties and recipient cell-mediated tissue reconstruction. Although some promising results have been shown, TEVG fabrication processes are complex, and the ideal method is still desired. We focused on the environment in which the vessels develop in utero and found that mechanical loading combined with hypoxia facilitated formation of cell-cell and cell-matrix junctions and natural extracellular matrix networks in vitro, which resulted in the fabrication of multi-layered tunica media entirely from human umbilical artery smooth muscle cells. These scaffoldless TEVGs, produced using a simple process, were implantable and have potential clinical applications for cardiovascular diseases.

Knowledge and practices of preconception care among rural Japanese women: findings from a mixed methods investigation.

BACKGROUND: Preconception care is not widespread in Japan and there is a pressing need to improve the practice. The present study assessed the knowledge and behavior of preconception care among women to seek effective intervention. Our research questions were: 1) How much do women know about preconception care? 2) How much are they practicing preconception care and what are the information sources of their behavior? 3) Do the women's preconception care behavior associated with accurate knowledge? METHODS: The research was conducted in a rural town in central Japan. Using an exploratory sequential mixed methods design, we undertook interviews, developed a survey based on the qualitative results, and then conducted a survey. The interviews explored how preconception care was perceived and practiced in women of childbearing age. The survey was designed to investigate the knowledge of preconception care among women with and without pregnancy experience, their practice behavior of preconception care, and whether the behavior is associated with knowledge. RESULTS: The participants were 13 for the interview and 232 for the survey. They had limited access to preconception care recommendations and advice for specific actions was given by obstetricians and gynecologists after pregnancy. There was a large gap in knowledge about preconception care between parous and nulliparous women, especially about the need for folic acid supplementation. Practices that were manageable in their daily lives, such as cessation of smoking and alcohol, diet, and weight management, were considered common sense. In contrast, recommended practices that require medical attention, such as screening for sexually transmitted diseases and cervical cancer, tended to be less accurately known and practiced. Participants' sources of information about preconception care were the Internet, family and friends and mass media. CONCLUSION: In rural Japan, women of childbearing age lack knowledge about preconception care, especially before their first pregnancy. Primary care providers should try outreach to schools and women's groups in the community, promote information sharing among family and close friends, and utilize information technology to enhance the knowledge and practice of preconception care.

Gut feeling for the diagnosis of cancer in general practice: a diagnostic accuracy review.

OBJECTIVES: Diagnostic delay in cancer is a challenge in primary care. Although screening tests are effective in diagnosing some cancers such as breast, colorectal and cervical cancers, symptom-based cancer diagnosis is often difficult due to its low incidence in primary care and the influence of patient anxiety, doctor-patient relationship and psychosocial context. A general practitioner's gut feeling for cancer may play a role in the early diagnosis of cancer in primary care where diagnostic resources are limited. The aim of this study is to summarise existing evidence about the test accuracy of gut feeling (index test) in symptomatic adult patients presenting to general practice, compared with multidisciplinary team-confirmed diagnosis of cancer (reference standard). DESIGN: Diagnostic accuracy review following Cochrane methods was performed. DATA SOURCES: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, the Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects and Medion databases. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: Cross-sectional, cohort and randomised studies of test accuracy that compared gut feeling (index test) with an appropriate cancer diagnosis (reference standard). No language or publication status restrictions were applied. We included all studies published before 25 March 2022. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Methodological quality was appraised, using Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 (QUADAS-2) criteria. Meta-analysis with hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristic (HSROC) models was used. RESULTS: Of 1286 potentially relevant studies identified, six met the inclusion criteria. For two of the six studies, data could not be extracted despite contacting authors. No studies satisfied all QUADAS-2 criteria. After meta-analysis of data from the remaining studies, the summary point of HSROC had a sensitivity of 0.40 (95% CI: 0.28, 0.53) and a specificity of 0.85 (95% CI: 0.75, 0.92). CONCLUSIONS: Gut feeling for cancer when used in symptomatic adult patients in general practice has a relatively low sensitivity and high specificity. When the prevalence of cancer in the symptomatic population presenting in general practice exceeds 1.15%, the performance of gut feeling reaches the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence 3% positive predictive value threshold for action, which recommends urgent access to specialist care and further investigations. The findings support the continued and expanded use of gut feeling items in referral pathways.

Development and validation of a rurality index for healthcare research in Japan: a modified Delphi study.

OBJECTIVES: Rural-urban healthcare disparities exist globally. Various countries have used a rurality index for evaluating the disparities. Although Japan has many remote islands and rural areas, no rurality index exists. This study aimed to develop and validate a Rurality Index for Japan (RIJ) for healthcare research. DESIGN: We employed a modified Delphi method to determine the factors of the RIJ and assessed the validity. The study developed an Expert Panel including healthcare professionals and a patient who had expertise in rural healthcare. SETTING: The panel members were recruited from across Japan including remote islands, mountain areas and heavy snow areas. The panel recruited survey participants whom the panel considered to have expertise. PARTICIPANTS: The initial survey recruited 100 people, including rural healthcare providers, local government staff and residents. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Factors to include in the RIJ were identified by the Expert Panel and survey participants. We also conducted an exploratory factor analysis on the selected factors to determine the factor structure. Convergent validity was examined by calculating the correlation between the index for physician distribution and the RIJ. Criterion-related validity was assessed by calculating the correlation with average life expectancy. RESULTS: The response rate of the final survey round was 84.8%. From the Delphi surveys, four factors were selected for the RIJ: population density, direct distance to the nearest hospital, remote islands and whether weather influences access to the nearest hospital. We employed the factor loadings as the weight of each factor. The average RIJ of every zip code was 50.5. The correlation coefficient with the index for physician distribution was -0.45 (p<0.001), and the correlation coefficients with the life expectancies of men and women were -0.35 (p<0.001) and -0.12 (p<0.001), respectively. CONCLUSION: This study developed the RIJ using a modified Delphi method. The index showed good validity.

Association between Undergraduate Education for Community-Based Medicine and General Practice Majors: A Longitudinal Study in Japan.

BACKGROUND: There is a shortage of general practitioners in Japan. With the revision of educational guidelines, general practice (GP) education has improved. However, the amount of education on GP in medical schools remains inconsistent. This study examined the relationship between medical students' amount of GP-related education and their subsequent choice of GP majors. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study was conducted in a teaching hospital in Japan. Participants were residents in the hospital. The exposure comprised compulsory lectures and training time for community-based medicine in medical schools. The outcome included participants choosing GP majors after their initial 2-year junior residency. RESULTS: Fifty-one participants were included in the final analysis. Of these, 14 majored in GP and 37 in non-GP after their initial 2-year junior residency. Of the participants who took GP lectures for 18 hours or more, 11 chose GP majors, and 18 chose non-GP majors (risk ratio, 2.78; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.88-8.79). Of the participants who underwent training for 12 days or more, 10 chose GP majors, and 16 chose non-GP majors (risk ratio, 2.40; 95% CI, 0.87-6.68). CONCLUSION: The results do not support the association between the amount of compulsory undergraduate education for community-based medicine and the subsequent increase in the number of residents choosing GP majors in Japan. Educators would do well to explore different approaches, such as improving the quality of education to increase the number of GP residents. Further research is needed to reach more definitive conclusions.

Essential components of a definition for early antibiotic treatment failure: A scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Despite the broad global use of antibiotics, there is no established definition of early antibiotic treatment failure (EATF) to aid clinical evaluation of treatment, which leads to inconsistent assessments of drug effectiveness. AIM: This scoping review aims to identify common components of EATF definitions by synthesizing studies mentioning EATF and its relevant thesaurus matches. DESIGN: Scoping review. METHODS: This scoping review was conducted following the PRISMA Scoping review guidelines. A systematic literature search was conducted using MEDLINE (PubMed), CENTRAL, CINAHL, and Web of Science, as well as a manual Google search. Search terms were EATF and its thesaurus matches. After removing duplications, candidate studies were screened by title and abstract prior to full text searches, and quality analysis was performed on eligible studies using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme. From each eligible study, the timing of evaluation, basic components, and detailed information for each definition of EATF were collected. The components of each definition for EATF were then summarized and counted, and finally the most common essential components were identified. RESULTS: Our systematic literature search found 2,472 candidate studies. After title and abstract screening, full text search and quality assessment, 61 studies, including 56 original studies and five reviews, were eligible for our analysis. Of these 56 original studies, 43 mentioned the timing of EATF evaluation 72 hours after the start of treatment with antibiotics. From these 43 studies, the most common indicators of EATF were extracted, among which a set of essential components for a definition of EATF were identified: mortality, vital signs, fever, symptoms, and additional treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our scoping review uncovered five essential factors for EATF. Further study is needed to evaluate the validity of our findings.

Prediction models for neutralization activity against emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants: A cross-sectional study.

Objective: Despite extensive vaccination campaigns to combat the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, variants of concern, particularly the Omicron variant (B.1.1.529 or BA.1), may escape the antibodies elicited by vaccination against SARS-CoV-2. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate 50% neutralizing activity (NT50) against SARS-CoV-2 D614G, Delta, Omicron BA.1, and Omicron BA.2 and to develop prediction models to predict the risk of infection in a general population in Japan. Methods: We used a random 10% of samples from 1,277 participants in a population-based cross-sectional survey conducted in January and February 2022 in Yokohama City, the most populous municipality in Japan. We measured NT50 against D614G as a reference and three variants (Delta, Omicron BA.1, and BA.2) and immunoglobulin G against SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (SP-IgG). Results: Among 123 participants aged 20-74, 93% had received two doses of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. The geometric means (95% confidence intervals) of NT50 were 65.5 (51.8-82.8) for D614G, 34.3 (27.1-43.4) for Delta, 14.9 (12.2-18.0) for Omicron BA.1, and 12.9 (11.3-14.7) for Omicron BA.2. The prediction model with SP-IgG titers for Omicron BA.1 performed better than the model for Omicron BA.2 (bias-corrected R 2 with bootstrapping: 0.721 vs. 0.588). The models also performed better for BA.1 than for BA.2 (R 2 = 0.850 vs. 0.150) in a validation study with 20 independent samples. Conclusion: In a general Japanese population with 93% of the population vaccinated with two doses of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, neutralizing activity against Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 were substantially lower than those against D614G or the Delta variant. The prediction models for Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 showed moderate predictive ability and the model for BA.1 performed well in validation data.

Usual source and better quality of primary care are associated with lower loneliness scores: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Loneliness is a global issue, and primary care physicians play an important role in assessing and intervening with loneliness. This study aimed to examine the association between having a usual source of care (USC) or a good quality of primary care, and loneliness. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Japan in 2022. A total of 6,000 residents were randomly sampled from the general population, aged 20-74 years. The outcome was the total score of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) 3-item loneliness scale. The exposure included USC and the Person-Centered Primary Care Measure (PCPCM), which assesses the quality of primary care. We conducted a linear regression analysis to adjust for age, sex, educational status, annual household income, self-rated health, living status (whether alone or not), and the existence of physical health problems. RESULTS: Of the 6,000 residents, 1,277 responded to the survey. The median score of the UCLA 3-item loneliness scale was 6.0 and the mean total score of the PCPCM was 2.62. Of the 1,277 individuals, 713 (55.8%) had USC. Having USC was significantly associated with lower scores on the UCLA 3-item loneliness scale; the coefficient was -0.34 (95% confidence interval (CI): -0.57 to -0.12). Also, the total PCPCM score was significantly associated with lower loneliness scores; the coefficient was -0.56 (P < 0.001, 95% CI: -0.78 to -0.35). CONCLUSIONS: Having USC and a better quality primary care were associated with a lower loneliness score. The quality of primary care could be a factor to mitigate patient loneliness.

Loneliness is a global issue, and primary care physicians play an important role in assessing and intervening with loneliness. This study aimed to examine the association between having a usual source of care (USC) or a good quality of primary care, and loneliness. The study was conducted in Japan in 2022. Of the 6,000 residents, 1,277 responded to the survey. After adjusting age, sex, educational status, annual household income, self-rated health, living status, and the existence of physical health problems, having USC was statistically significantly associated with lower scores on the UCLA 3-item loneliness scale. The total scores of the Person-Centered Primary Care Measure were also associated with lower loneliness scale scores. The quality of primary care could be a factor to mitigate patient loneliness.

Death at home versus other locations in older people receiving physician-led home visits: A multicenter prospective study in Japan.

BACKGROUND: The Japanese government is promoting physician-led home visits as well as end-of-life care at home. However, the proportion of deaths occurring at home has remained unchanged for the past 20 years. OBJECTIVES: To report the cumulative incidence of deaths at home and to explore the factors associated with deaths at home versus other places, mainly hospitals. METHODS: This was a multicenter prospective cohort study in a primary care setting. We enrolled patients aged ≥65 years who had started to receive regular visits by family physicians from 13 facilities in and around Tokyo between February 1, 2013 and January 31, 2016. Patients were followed-up until January 31, 2017. The primary outcome measures were mortality rate and cumulative incidence of deaths at home. RESULTS: We enrolled 762 patients. Of 368 deaths, 133 occurred in the patient's home. The mortality rates at home were 137.6/1000 person-years (95% confidence interval 116.1-163.1). In cumulative incidence function, the longer duration of care at home lowers the likelihood of death at home. Multivariable multinomial logistic models showed that younger age and higher Barthel Index score reduced the likelihood of deaths at home, while receiving oxygen therapy and the presence of a full-time caregiver increased the likelihood of deaths at home relative to deaths at other locations. CONCLUSIONS: Of deceased patients, only one-third died in patients' homes. We found several factors associated with deaths at home, which appeared to reflect the readiness of patients and their families for death. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2022; 22: 1005-1012.

Impact of COVID-19 infection rates on admissions for ambulatory care sensitive conditions: nationwide difference-in-difference design in Japan.

OBJECTIVES: SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19) has affected tertiary medical institutions and primary care. Admission for ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSCs) is an important indicator of primary care quality. However, no nationwide study, especially in Asia, has examined the association between admissions for ACSCs and local surges in COVID-19. This study aimed to examine how the number of admissions for ACSCs has changed in Japan between the areas with higher and lower rates of COVID-19 infection. DESIGN: This was a retrospective two-stage cross-sectional study. We employed a difference-in-difference design to compare the number of hospital admissions for ACSCs between the areas with higher and lower rates of COVID-19 infection in Japan. SETTING: The study used a nationwide database in Japan. PARTICIPANTS: All patients were aged 20 years and above and were admitted due to ACSCs during the study period between March and September 2019 (before the pandemic) and between March and September 2020 (during the pandemic). RESULTS: The total number of ACSC admissions was 464 560 (276 530 in 2019 and 188 030 in 2020). The change in the number of admissions for ACSCs per 100 000 was not statistically significant between the areas with higher and lower rates of COVID-19 infection: 7.50 (95% CI -87.02 to 102.01). In addition, in acute, chronic and preventable ACSCs, the number of admissions per 100 000 individuals did not change significantly. CONCLUSION: Although admissions for ACSCs decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic, there was no significant change between the areas with higher and lower rates of COVID-19 infection. This implies that the COVID-19 pandemic affected the areas with higher infection rates and the areas with lower rates.

Impaired Left Atrial Function in Patients with Atrial Septal Defect and History of Atrial Fibrillation.

In patients with atrial septal defect (ASD), atrial left-to-right shunting causes left atrial (LA) remodeling and dysfunction, leading to atrial fibrillation (AF). In adults with ASD and concomitant AF, LA function should be evaluated after ASD closure plus AF radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA).This multicenter retrospective cohort study included patients who underwent transcatheter ASD closure at one of the four leading hospitals. Patients with a history of AF also underwent preceding RFCA. The association between AF history and LA ejection fraction (EF) (indicating LA global function) at 6-12 months following ASD closure was evaluated. To account for differences in baseline characteristics between patients with and without a history of AF, we conducted the following statistical methods: (1) multivariate regression analysis in the prepropensity score (PS)-matched cohort and (2) univariate comparisons in the PS-matched cohort.Overall, this study included 231 patients (30 with AF history, 201 without). Multiple regression analysis showed that AF history was independently associated with impaired LAEF (ß = -10.425, P < 0.001, model created prior to propensity matching). A one-to-one PS matching (25 pairs) showed that the LAEF at 6-12 months following ASD closure was significantly impaired in patients with ASD and AF history compared to that in patients without history of AF (median LAEF, 37.5% (interquartile range [IQR] 29.4%-48.5%) versus 52.3 [IQR 50.0%-56.6%]; P < 0.001).LA function was impaired in patients with ASD and a history of AF at 6-12 months after successful transcatheter ASD closure and on maintenance of sinus rhythm by RFCA.

Japanese primary care physicians' experience in treating their family members: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Guidelines worldwide recommend that physicians should not treat their family members. However, studies in the U.S. have shown that approximately 74-83% of physicians have experience of treating family members. Primary care physicians were more likely to have such experiences than other specialists. In Japan, physicians do not have any guidelines regarding treating family members, and little is known about the experiences of primary care physicians. Therefore, we investigated the experience of treating family members or relatives among primary care physicians in Japan. METHODS: This cross-sectional study used an online questionnaire. We recruited 2,000 physicians who were members of the Japan Primary Care Association using random sampling. Data were collected from February 10 to March 10, 2021. We compare the experiences of treating family members between clinic-based doctors and hospital-based doctors using the chi-square test. We performed logistic regression analysis to adjust for gender, age, presence of a doctor in family, and physician's geographic location (rural or not rural). RESULTS: A total of 466 physicians (response rate = 23.3%) completed the survey. Of the sample, 79.8% had experience of treating family members or relatives. In the univariate analysis, being a clinic-based physician was associated with experience in treating family members compared to hospital-based physicians (87.6% vs. 74.9%, p = 0.001). Multivariable analysis showed that being a clinic-based physician (odds ratio 2.30, 95% confidence interval 1.31-4.04) and age of 45-64 years (odds ratio 2.93, 95% confidence interval 1.74-4.93) were significantly related to experience treating family. Gender and geographic location were not statistically significant factors. CONCLUSIONS: A high percentage of Japanese primary care physicians, especially those who worked in clinics, reported experience treating family members or relatives. These findings will serve as basic data for future studies regarding the care of families and relatives of physicians in Japan.