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Biomedical subjects

M Iki

Publications and source records attributed to M Iki.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Metastatic epithelioid sarcoma with an N-ras oncogene mutation.

At age 25 a Japanese woman noticed an elastic-hard nodule 2 cm in diameter on the anterior side of her right leg. The nodule had developed an ulcer in its center. Simple resection was performed several times. However, the lesion recurred repeatedly. The patient underwent amputation of the right leg at the age of 34, because the diagnosis of epithelioid sarcoma was established histologically. No recurrence was observed for 9 years. Recently, the patient noticed multiple painful, ulcerative nodules about 1 cm in diameter on her scalp, trunk, and extremities. She refused extensive resection for a religious reason and died of massive hematemesis. Autopsy revealed metastatic epithelioid sarcoma in the skin, lungs, kidneys, pancreas, transverse colon, thyroid, and sternum. Chromosomal analysis of the tumor revealed various aberrations and an N-ras oncogene mutation.

Adult↗

[Bone mineral density of the lumbar spine and its relation to biological and lifestyle factors in middle-aged and aged Japanese women (Part 1). Relationship of age and menopause to bone mineral density of the lumbar spine measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry].

Bone mineral density (BMD) of the lumbar spine in 198 community-dwelling Japanese women aged 35 years and over was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry to investigate the effects of aging and menopause on BMD. A highly significant negative correlation between age and BMD was observed in postmenopausal women as widely accepted. We found a weak but statistically significant negative correlation between age and BMD in even premenopausal women, suggesting that their bone loss had commenced before menopause. Marked decrement in BMD was seen during the first ten years after menopause. Menopause clearly accelerated bone loss in the lumbar spine. Two-way analysis of variance of BMD on age and menopausal status showed that these explanatory variables had a significantly decreasing effect on BMD independently of each other. Menopausal status had a greater sum of squares than age, which suggested that menopause played a greater role in bone loss than did aging. Early menopause has been implied as one of the risk factors for bone loss. The women aged 50 to 59 having encountered menopause before 49 years old exhibited significantly lower BMD than those of similar age who experienced menopause at age 49 and older. This difference in BMD was not observed in the women aged 60 and over. Early menopause was no more likely to be a risk factor for bone loss in the elderly women. We conclude that bone loss in the lumbar spine begins before menopause and is accelerated markedly by menopause for about ten years, and that menopause has a greater decreasing effect on the bone mass than does chronological age while each of them has an independent effect on the bone mass decrement.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗

[Bone mineral density of lumbar spine and its relations to biological and lifestyle factors in middle-aged and aged Japanese women (Part 2). Effects of age and menopause on bone mineral density evaluated by biochemical markers of bone metabolism].

Bone mineral density of the lumbar spine (BMD) and biochemical markers for bone turnover were examined to study the mechanisms of age-related and menopause-related bone loss. We measured BMD of the lumbar spine and serum bone alkaline phosphatase (B-AIP) and bone gla-protein (BGP) as markers of bone formation and fasting urinary creatinine-adjusted hydroxyproline (Hyp/Cr) and calcium (Ca/Cr) as those of bone resorption in 166 community-dwelling Japanese women. A highly significant positive correlation between age and each of the biochemical markers, except for Ca/Cr, was observed. This relationship was not linear. Marked elevation in the levels of the markers was found in women in their sixth decade women compared with those in their fifth. All the markers correlated inversely with the BMD and these relationships remained significant after elimination of the effect of age by partialization. When analyzing the subjects in each five-year age group, the positive correlation of Hyp/Cr with Ca/Cr was significant in the subjects aged 45 to 49 and the negative correlation of Hyp/Cr with BMD was significant in those aged 50 to 54. B-AIP correlated positively with BGP in the subjects aged between 50 and 54 and inversely with BMD in those aged between 55 and 59. These correlations were significant. Thus, intercorrelations between the markers were observed five years earlier than were correlations between the markers and BMD. Such associations appeared earlier in terms of the markers for bone resorption than in terms of the markers for bone formation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗

Vibration-induced white finger as a risk factor for hearing loss and postural instability.

Effect of vibration-induced white finger (VWF) on the hearing was examined in 289 Japanese forest workers. From 51 subjects suffering from VWF and 228 with no history of VWF, 37 pairs were formed, matched for age and hours of noise exposure. The cases with VWF had a significantly higher hearing threshold at 4 and 8 kHz than their matched controls. This result was corroborated by the follow-up study which showed significant deterioration of hearing at 2 and 4 kHz only in subjects with VWF during five-year follow-up period. The possible effects of VWF on the postural stability were investigated in 71 Finnish forest workers. Postural stability was evaluated by an average velocity of the body-sway (ASV) measured with a force platform technique. Neither age nor exposure duration to chain saw noise and vibration correlated with ASV. A significant positive correlation was found between ASV and hearing level at 4 kHz after allowing for the effects of the exposure. Multiple regression analysis of ASV on age, exposure hours, hearing level at 4 kHz and prevalence of VWF showed that the hearing level and VWF had significant and almost significant effects on ASV, respectively. Thus, the workers suffering from VWF developed greater hearing loss and the hearing loss correlated with ASV. VWF explained some variance of ASV in the regression analysis. VWF seemed to play some role in hearing deterioration and possibly in genesis of balance disorder.

Adult↗

Hearing loss risk from exposure to shooting impulses in workers exposed to occupational noise.

The effect of shooting impulses on hearing was analysed in 150 professional forest workers exposed to noise from chain saws. The exposure to shooting impulses (Lesi) was designed to take into account the peak levels of shooting impulses, their number and use of hearing protectors. Hearing loss was dependent on Lesi even after allowing for the age of subjects and their exposure to chain saw noise. Hearing threshold levels were compared between pairwise matched groups with high and low Lesi. Proper matching was achieved for age, chain saw noise, salicylate consumption, blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking and vibration-induced white finger symptoms. The workers with high Lesi had 9 dB greater hearing loss at 4 kHz and 10 dB greater hearing loss at 8 kHz than those with low Lesi, the difference being significant at P < 0.05 level. In evaluation of noise-induced hearing loss the exposure to shooting impulses from different calibre weapons should be determined since they increase the extent of hearing loss. The present study describes the Lesi method which more accurately evaluates the harmful effects of shooting noise impulses on hearing.

Adult↗

A statistical study on clinical findings of solar keratosis.

Clinical findings were studied in 50 patients with 53 lesions of solar keratosis encountered during the 15 year period from 1977 to 1991. The majority of these cases were evident in the over-sixty age group (average 62.2 years). A greater proportion were females. Most lesions were observed on the face; especially on the cheek, and from the outer eyelid to the temple. The erythematous type (desquamative-keratotic) lesion was the most evident. With the exceptions of the years 1979 and 1991, no remarkable increase in the number of patients was noted during the 15 year period.

Adult↗

A statistical study on histopathologic findings of solar keratosis.

We examined histopathologic data from 50 patients with 53 lesions of solar keratosis encountered over the past 15 years (1977 to 1991). The epidermis showed acanthosis, uneven epidermal dyeing properties, disorderly arrangement of the basal cells, atypia of the nucleus, mitotic figures and hyperpigmentation of the basal layers. The dermis showed actinic elastosis, cell infiltration mainly consisting of the lymphoid cells, and incontinentia pigmenti histologica. Among histologic types, the hypertrophic type was the primary example.

Adult↗

[Epidemiological factors affecting place of terminal care and of death in the elderly].

To clarify the factors associated with the location where terminal care and death occurs in the elderly, we conducted interviews of family members who had cared for elderly persons who died from cerebral infarction in Fukui City, Sabae City, and Oono City in 1985. Subjects selected had conscious levels that were clear or Level 1 on the Japan Coma Scale at the onset of disease and whose debilitation had exceeded six months. We evaluated the characteristics of three groups, Group 1 comprising 21 subjects who had died in a hospital after both institutional and home care, Group 2 being 30 people who had died at home after a similar course of treatment as Group 1, and Group 3 being 18 subjects who had died at home after non-institutional care. In Group 1, elderly spouses of the subjects performed a larger part of the care than in the other groups. Caregivers who were members of the same household as the subjects had higher rates of having jobs other than housekeeping and of receiving medical treatment for some disease in Group 1 than in the other groups. Subjects in Group 2 received relatively more care in their own households and obtained greater amount of medical service assistance. Subjects in Group 3 experienced the least amount of disturbance in daily living activities, the shortest period of debilitation, and had the most household members able to take care of them.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Aged↗

[Cumulative incidence rate of divorces for birth cohort estimated by the life-table method].

The trend of divorces has been usually evaluated by the divorce rate. However, it is difficult to make detailed analyses of the trend of or relevant factors concerning divorces by the divorce rate, because the denominator of this index is not a population at risk of divorces. The application of the life-table method to calculation of cumulative incidence rate of divorces for a birth cohort based on vital statistics data was introduced and its problems were discussed. This method was able to give a precise incidence rate of divorces and made it possible to examine the relationship of marital durations, generation of cohorts or age at marriage to the incidence of divorces. The results obtained were as follows: 1. The cumulative incidence rate of divorces increased and the marital duration-specific incidence rate of divorces decreased with continuation of marriages. 2. The cumulative incidence rate of divorces was higher in younger birth cohorts than in older cohorts. 3. The cumulative incidence rate of divorces was the lowest in the cohort married when the husband was 23 to 32 years of age than in the cohorts with other ages at marriage in all the birth cohorts examined.

Age Factors↗

[Rate of incidence of divorce in birth cohorts classified by age difference between married couples].

We examined the situation concerning divorce in Japan from the view-point of age difference between married couples using vital statistics from the year 1952 to 1985. Annual and cumulative divorce rates were introduced as rate of incidence of divorce. We studied these indices by age difference between couples in birth cohorts of husbands. Our conclusions were as follows: 1) The cumulative divorce rate was lower in early birth cohorts than in late birth cohorts. 2) The cumulative divorce rate for young adult couples (aged 20-30) was higher than that for middle-aged couples (aged more than 30) in every cohort. 3) The cumulative divorce rate was lowest when husbands were 1 to 4 years older than wives. This tendency was quite similar in different ages and cohorts. 4) The same conclusions were reached when the annual divorce rate was substituted for the cumulative divorce rate.

Adult↗

Vibration-induced white finger and auditory susceptibility to noise exposure.

It is well known that there are wide individual variations in the susceptibility of human hearing to noise exposure. The hearing of male forest workers were examined with vibration-induced white finger (VWF) as an indicator of noise susceptibility of hearing. The results were as follows: 1. Hearing losses at 4 and 8 kHz in subjects with VWF were greater than those of unaffected men in a matched pair case-control study allowing for confounding due to differences of age and noise exposure. 2. The hearing loss at 4 kHz on the ipsilateral side of the hand with VWF was greater than the loss on the contralateral side in subjects with VWF in one hand. 3. The hearing loss at 4 kHz in subjects with VWF progressed more rapidly during a five-year follow-up period than the loss in men with no history of VWF. These results indicate that the hearing of subjects with VWF was more vulnerable to noise than the hearing of subjects without VWF. It was suggested that a pathological change causing VWF, such as enhanced vasoconstriction due to elevated sympathetic nervous tone, could also cause this additional auditory vulnerability to noise exposure.

Adult↗

Hearing of forest workers with vibration-induced white finger: a five-year follow-up.

To examine the association between vibration-induced white finger (VWF) and hearing loss, 108 male forest workers who regularly used vibrating tools were followed up for five years. Case-control pairs matched for initial age and hearing level and exposure time to noise during the study period were selected from men with and without VWF. The hearing levels significantly worsened during the follow-up period at 2, 4 and 8 kHz in the affected cases but only at 8 kHz in the controls. Since threshold shift at 4 kHz, which is a typical effect of noise exposure, was significant only in the affected cases, it is suggested that the hearing of people with VWF was more vulnerable to noise. A pathological change causing VWF might also increase the susceptibility of hearing to noise damage.

Aging↗

Association between vibration-induced white finger and hearing loss in forestry workers.

The present investigation was a case-referent study in which age and hours of vibrating tool operation were matched for the cases and referents in an effort to confirm the earlier reported difference in hearing loss between workers with vibration-induced white finger (VWF) and those without VWF. Thirty-seven pairs were formed from 51 men with VWF and 228 without it. The greatest hearing loss was at 4 kHz in both the case and reference groups, as is usually found in typical noise-induced hearing loss. The case group had a higher hearing threshold than the reference group at every frequency, and the difference was significant at 4 and 8 kHz and almost so at 2 kHz. As corroboration for this association, the subjects were divided into three groups by recovery rate of skin temperature 5 min after cold provocation at 10 degrees C for 10 min, a procedure which is one of the valid objective tests for VWF. The subjects with the most delayed recovery reached the highest age-corrected median hearing level at 4 kHz, and those with the promptest recovery marked the lowest. The cause of this increased damage of hearing in relation to VWF is not known. However, the association between VWF and hearing loss is interesting in view of the effects of vibration on parts of the body other than the hand and arm.

Female↗

Usefulness of fingertip skin temperature for examining peripheral circulatory disturbances of vibrating tool operators.

The data on skin temperature obtained in a cold provocation test (immersing one hand in water at 10 degrees C for 10 min) were analyzed to confirm their usefulness for examining the peripheral circulatory functions of vibrating tool operators. Under room temperatures from 20 to 23 degrees C in winter, the skin temperatures after the end of provocation of the VWF (vibration-induced white finger) group were generally significantly lower than those of the age-matched non-VWF and reference groups, and the non-VWF operators with over 5,000 h of chain-saw experience showed significantly lower skin temperatures 5 and 10 min after provocation than the age-matched referents. In this study skin temperature was used as a screening test for VWF. The highest sensitivity (91.1%) was obtained at 19.0 degrees C at the fifth minute after the end of the provocation, and the highest specificity (93.3%) at 15.5 degrees C at the third minute after provocation, both the sensitivity and specificity being over 70% and the correct diagnosis rate being over 80% among the screening levels.

Cold Temperature↗

An association between Raynaud's phenomenon and hearing loss in forestry workers.

Forestry workers using chain saws run the risk of both vibration disease and noise-induced hearing loss. It was reported that people with Raynaud's phenomenon of occupational origin had more severe hearing loss than those without it. A possibility of confounding due to age and duration of noise exposure from the tools remained unsolved, however. A matched pair case-control study was conducted to eliminate such confounding. Forestry workers operating chain saws, bush cleaners and/or winches were investigated. For 37 men with Raynaud's phenomenon a control was chosen from those unaffected whose age and operating hours for the tools were almost equal to those of the cases. Good matching was achieved for age and for total hours of work with the tools. The cases had higher median hearing threshold than the controls at every frequency. The difference was significant (p less than 0.05) at 4 and 8 kHz and almost significant at 2 kHz (p not equal to 0.06). According to our classification of the audiogram, the cases had more advanced types of noise-induced hearing loss than did the controls. Thus, an association between Raynaud's phenomenon and hearing impairment in forestry workers handling chain saws and/or other tools was found to persist even after the effect of age and exposure time was eliminated.

Adult↗

[Occupational cervicobrachial disorder (OCD) of nursery school teachers based on subjective symptoms related to OCD].

To clarify the association of occupational cervicobrachial disorder (OCD), with labor conditions, and personal situation, a questionnaire study was conducted among nursery school teachers. The questionnaire was composed of subjective symptoms related to OCD (neck, shoulder, back and arm stiffness/pain), labor conditions, and whether or not the teacher had a child of her own under the age of two. Data of 793 subjects were analyzed. The results were as follows: The mean age and working period of 793 subjects were 27.6 (+/- 4.9) and 5.5 (+/- 3.2) years, respectively. Of them, 38.5% complained of right shoulder stiffness every day during the prior month, 26.5% neck stiffness, 18.8% arm stiffness, 9.6% back pain, 7.8% shoulder pain and 3.9% arm pain. The complaint rates on the left side were similar to those on the right side. The complaint rates of these subjective symptoms increased with the duration of the working period. The complaint rates of shoulder, neck and arm stiffness increased earlier than those of back stiffness, shoulder or arm pain. The complaint rates of these symptoms were highest among teachers in charge of children less than one-year-old and those in charge of four-year olds. Teachers in charge of three-year-old children had the lowest complaint rates. Subjects complaining of neck, shoulder and arm stiffness on every day worked under less favorable conditions than those without such complaints. When subjects having no children of their own under the age of two were matched in their ages and length of work history with those who have such children, the complaint rates of the two groups did not differ statistically for any of the subjective symptoms.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗