Impact of Sacral Surface Therapeutic Electrical Stimulation on Early Recovery of Urinary Continence after Radical Retropubic Prostatectomy: A Pilot Study

Objectives. To investigate whether sacral surface therapeutic electrical stimulation (SSTES) initiated during the early postoperative period would be effective towards early recovery of postprostatectomy urinary continence. Methods. A total of 35 consecutive patients who underwent radical prostatectomy by a single surgeon were enrolled in this study. Twenty early patients began pelvic floor muscle exercise (PME). Fifteen subsequent patients received SSTES postoperatively with no instruction for PME provided. Immediate urinary function just after catheter removal was evaluated with frequency-volume chart and 24-hour pad test. Results. There were no differences between the SSTES and PME groups in maximum voided volume capacity (MVV) and urine loss ratio (ULR) on the first day after removal of urethral catheter. However, on day 3 MVV was significantly larger and ULR was also significantly lower in the SSTES group. Conclusions. SSTES treatment is feasible and appears to be effective for early recovery of urinary continence after radical prostatectomy

Clinical Study Impact of Sacral Surface Therapeutic Electrical Stimulation on Early Recovery of Urinary Continence after Radical Retropubic Prostatectomy: A Pilot Study

Objectives. To investigate whether sacral surface therapeutic electrical stimulation (SSTES) initiated during the early postoperative period would be effective towards early recovery of postprostatectomy urinary continence. Methods. A total of 35 consecutive patients who underwent radical prostatectomy by a single surgeon were enrolled in this study. Twenty early patients began pelvic floor muscle exercise (PME). Fifteen subsequent patients received SSTES postoperatively with no instruction for PME provided. Immediate urinary function just after catheter removal was evaluated with frequency-volume chart and 24-hour pad test. Results. There were no differences between the SSTES and PME groups in maximum voided volume capacity (MVV) and urine loss ratio (ULR) on the first day after removal of urethral catheter. However, on day 3 MVV was significantly larger and ULR was also significantly lower in the SSTES group. Conclusions. SSTES treatment is feasible and appears to be effective for early recovery of urinary continence after radical prostatectomy

A list of all integrable 2D homogeneous polynomial potentials with a polynomial integral of order at most 4 in the momenta

We searched integrable 2D homogeneous polynomial potential with a polynomial first integral by using the so-called direct method of searching for first integrals. We proved that there exist no polynomial first integrals which are genuinely cubic or quartic in the momenta if the degree of homogeneous polynomial potentials is greater than 4.Comment: 22 pages, no figures, to appear in J. Phys. A: Math. Ge

The renin–angiotensin system promotes arrhythmogenic substrates and lethal arrhythmias in mice with non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy

[Aims]The progression of pathological left ventricular remodelling leads to cardiac dysfunction and contributes to the occurrence of malignant arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. The underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear, however. Our aim was to examine the role of the renin–angiotensin system (RAS) in the mechanism underlying arrhythmogenic cardiac remodelling using a transgenic mouse expressing a cardiac-specific dominant-negative form of neuron-restrictive silencer factor (dnNRSF-Tg). This mouse model exhibits progressive cardiac dysfunction leading to lethal arrhythmias. [Methods and results]Subcutaneous administration of aliskiren, a direct renin inhibitor, significantly suppressed the progression of pathological cardiac remodelling and improved survival among dnNRSF-Tg mice while reducing arrhythmogenicity. Genetic deletion of the angiotensin type 1a receptor (AT1aR) similarly suppressed cardiac remodelling and sudden death. In optical mapping analyses, spontaneous ventricular tachycardia (VT) and fibrillation (VF) initiated by breakthrough-type excitations originating from focal activation sites and maintained by functional re-entry were observed in dnNRSF-Tg hearts. Under constant pacing, dnNRSF-Tg hearts exhibited markedly slowed conduction velocity, which likely contributes to the arrhythmogenic substrate. Aliskiren treatment increased conduction velocity and reduced the incidence of sustained VT. These effects were associated with suppression of cardiac fibrosis and restoration of connexin 43 expression in dnNRSF-Tg ventricles. [Conclusion]Renin inhibition or genetic deletion of AT1aR suppresses pathological cardiac remodelling that leads to the generation of substrates maintaining VT/VF and reduces the occurrence of sudden death in dnNRSF-Tg mice. These findings demonstrate the significant contribution of RAS activation to the progression of arrhythmogenic substrates

Ca' Foscari Japanese Studies 7, Arts and Literature 2, Rethinking Nature in Japan from Tradition to Modernity

It is a pleasure for us to present this book, with the contributions of the Inter- national Symposium Rethinking Nature in Japan: from Tradition to Modernity held at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice in the Auditorium Santa Margherita. This was the Second International Conference organized in Venice: in 2013 we celebrated the first Symposium Rethinking Nature in Contemporary Japan. Science, Economics, Politics, published by Edizioni Cafoscari in 2014. The aim of the Symposium was the analysis of Japanese society and the international relationships after the accident at Fukushima nuclear plant in March 2011. Its wide-ranging consequences on everyday life of Japanese citizens brought into the limelight issues such as the protection of the environment, the man- agement of natural resources, and food safety, both within the country and abroad, as fundamental challenges to our globalised society. In 2013, the participation of scholars from Europe, Japan and United States helped us to achieve a deeper insight into this multifaceted issue, combining several disciplines under a multidisciplinary and comparative approach. At the root of all these problems stand the basic theme of the relation between man and nature. Historically, Japan has developed through the centuries an extremely rich tradition on this complex topic, in the intel- lectual field as well as in terms of material culture. That is the reason why we decided to choose as the theme of this Sym- posium in 2014 the cultural representations of the idea of Nature in the transition from tradition to modernity. This Symposium, “Rethinking Nature in Japan: From Tradition to Mo- dernity”, was centered on Fine Arts, Religion and Thought, Literature, Theatre and Cinema. We had four panel sessions: “Nature and Environment in Japanese Fine Arts: from Tradition to Modernity”, in Japanese Literature, in Japanese Thought and in Performing Arts. First of all, as a representative of Ca’ Foscari University and of our colleagues, we would like to thank all students, guests and colleagues for their presence at the Symposium, and thank also our special guests from Japan, from the United State, from Europe and from Italy for their (pre- cious) contributions. We believe for all the participants [students, scholars, lecturers, for you and for us] our Symposium was very interesting and fruitful and we hope that the same will be also for this book We would like to thank the representatives of our University, the Rector of Ca’ Foscari University, prof. Carlo Carraro and prof. Tiziana Lippiello, Director of the Department of Asian and North African Studies for their constant support. We are much indebeted to the Director Matsunaga Fumio and to the Japan Foundation for their special attention to the Japanese Studies Sec- tion of our Department. As for our sponsors, we would like to express our thanks to SAGA [School of Asian Studies and Business Management] for the generous financial support. We are also grateful to the artist Miyayama Hiroaki who painted the wisteria branch in the poster of the program and generously allowed us to use it as the logo of our Symposium, and prof. Caterina Virdis Limentani of Padua University who organized the exhibition: Splendori dal Giappone, Le storie del principe Genji nella tradizione Edo e nelle incisioni di Miyayama Hiroaki and the relation between this work and Miyayama’s prints in Padua at Palazzo Zuckermann from March 1st to 31st, 2014. Last but not least, we would thank again all the students who attended the Symposium, the speakers/contributors from Japan, United State, Eu- rope, Italy, the student staff, all our colleagues of the Japanese Section, our young researchers, the organizing committee: Paolo Calvetti, Massimo Raveri, Luisa Bienati, Aldo Tollini, Marcella Mariotti, Giovanni Bulian, Ca- terina Mazza, Toshio Miyake, Andrea Revelant and Pierantonio Zanotti, to all the administration st

Associations of Nutrient Patterns with the Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome : Results from the Baseline Data of the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort Study

The association between nutrient patterns and metabolic syndrome (MetS) has not been examined in a Japanese population. A cross-sectional study was performed on 30,108 participants (aged 35–69 years) in the baseline survey of the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort Study. Dietary intake was assessed using a 46-item food frequency questionnaire. MetS was diagnosed according to the Joint Interim Statement Criteria of 2009, using body mass index instead of waist circumference. Factor analysis was applied to energy-adjusted intake of 21 nutrients, and three nutrient patterns were extracted: Factor 1 (fiber, potassium and vitamins pattern); Factor 2 (fats and fat-soluble vitamins pattern); and Factor 3 (saturated fatty acids, calcium and vitamin B2 pattern). In multiple logistic regression analysis adjusted for sex, age, and other potential confounders, Factor 1 scores were associated with a significantly reduced odds ratio (OR) of MetS and all five components. Factor 2 scores were associated with significantly increased prevalence of MetS, obesity, and high blood pressure. Factor 3 scores were significantly associated with lower OR of MetS, high blood pressure, high serum triglycerides and low HDL cholesterol levels. Analysis of nutrient patterns may be useful to assess the overall quality of diet and its association with MetS

Breastfeeding history and metabolic syndrome in parous women

Objective The aim of the present study was to investigate the associations between breastfeeding and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in community-dwelling parous women and to clarify whether the associations depend on age. Methods The present cross-sectional study included 11,118 women, aged 35–69 years. Participants’ longest breastfeeding duration for one child and their number of breastfed children were assessed using a self-administered questionnaire, and their total breastfeeding duration was approximated as a product of the number of breastfed children and the longest breastfeeding duration. The longest and the total breastfeeding durations were categorized into none and tertiles above 0 months. Metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular risk factors (obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia) were defined as primary and secondary outcomes, respectively. Associations between breastfeeding history and metabolic syndrome or each cardiovascular risk factor were assessed using multivariable unconditional logistic regression analysis. Results Among a total of 11,118 women, 10,432 (93.8%) had ever breastfed, and 1,236 (11.1%) had metabolic syndrome. In participants aged <55 years, an inverse dose–response relationship was found between the number of breastfed children and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome; multivariable-adjusted odds ratios for 1, 2, 3, and ≥4 breastfed children were 0.60 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.31 to 1.17), 0.50 (95% CI: 0.29 to 0.87), 0.44 (95% CI: 0.24 to 0.84), and 0.35 (95% CI: 0.14 to 0.89), respectively. The longest and total breastfeeding durations of longer than 0 months were also associated with lower odds of metabolic syndrome relative to no breastfeeding history in participants aged <55 years. In contrast, all measures of breastfeeding history were not significantly associated with metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular risk factors in participants aged ≥55 years old. Conclusions Breastfeeding history may be related to lower prevalence of metabolic syndrome in middle-aged parous women

ABCA1 gene-physical activity interaction for HDL-C

Few studies have investigated the interactions between HDL-C-related SNPs identified by genome-wide association (GWA) study and physical activity (PA) on HDL-C. First, we conducted a sex-stratified GWA study in a discovery sample (2,231 men and 2,431 women) and replication sample (2,599 men and 3,109 women) to identify SNPs influencing log-transformed HDL-C in Japanese participants in the baseline survey of the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort Study. We also replicated previously reported HDL-C-related SNPs in a combined (discovery plus replication) sample (4,830 men and 5,540 women). We then analyzed the interactions of the HDL-C-related SNPs with PA on HDL-C. The sex-stratified GWA analyses identified 11 and 10 HDL-C-related SNPs in men and women as targets for an interaction analysis. Among these, only one interaction of ABCA1 rs1883025 with PA was statistically significant in men, after Bonferroni correction [P-interaction = 0.001 (α = 0.05/21 = 0.002)]. The per-major-allele (C allele) increase in log-transformed HDL-C was lost in men with low PA (β = 0.008) compared with those with medium (β = 0.032) or high PA (β = 0.034). These findings suggest that the benefit of carrying a C allele of ABCA1 rs1883025 on enhancing HDL-C may be attenuated in inactive men

Effect of the interaction between physical activity and estimated macronutrient intake on HbA1c : population-based cross-sectional and longitudinal studies

Introduction Healthy diet and physical activity (PA) are essential for preventing type 2 diabetes, particularly, a combination of diet and PA. However, reports on interaction between PA and diet, especially from large epidemiological studies, are limited. We investigated the effect of interaction between PA and macronutrient intake on hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels in the general population. Research design and methods We conducted a cross-sectional study of 55 469 men and women without diabetes who participated in the baseline survey of the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort Study. A self-administered questionnaire ascertained PA and macronutrient intake (carbohydrate, fat, and protein). Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to adjust for confounding variables and examine the interactions. In addition, we conducted a longitudinal study during a 5-year period within a subcohort (n=6881) with accelerometer-assessed PA data. Results Overall, PA had a weak inverse association (β=−0.00033, p=0.049) and carbohydrate intake had a strong positive association (β=0.00393, p<0.001) with HbA1c. We observed a tendency of interactions between PA and carbohydrate or fat intake, but not protein intake, on HbA1c levels after adjusting for age, sex, study area, total energy intake, alcohol consumption, smoking, and medication for hypertension or hypercholesterolemia (Pinteraction=0.054, 0.006, and 0.156, respectively). The inverse associations between PA and HbA1c level were more evident in participants with high-carbohydrate (or low-fat) intake than in participants with low-carbohydrate (or high-fat) intake. Although further adjustment for body mass index slightly attenuated the above interactions (Pinteraction=0.098 for carbohydrate and 0.068 for fat), the associations between PA and HbA1c level in stratified analyses remained unchanged. Similar associations and interactions were reproduced in the longitudinal study. Conclusions The present results suggest that the effect of PA on HbA1c levels is modified by intake of macronutrient composition

Association between plasma levels of homocysteine, folate, and vitamin B12, and dietary folate intake and hypertension in a cross-sectional study

There are few studies examining the association between homocysteine (Hcy) level and the risk of hypertension with consideration for folate and vitamin B12 as related to Hcy level. We simultaneously examined the associations of plasma levels of Hcy, folate, and vitamin B12, and dietary folate intake with the prevalence of hypertension. Participants included 1046 men and 1033 women (mean age ± standard deviation: 56.0 ± 8.9 years) in the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort Study. Dietary folate intake was estimated using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Hypertension was defined based on measured blood pressure and use of antihypertensive medication. A total of 734 participants (35.3%) had hypertension. Multivariate-adjusted odds ratios of hypertension for the highest quartile group of Hcy were 2.36 (95% CI 1.41–3.96) in men and 1.86 (95% CI 1.11–3.11) in women, as compared with the lowest group (P for trend = 0.014 and 0.005, respectively). Dietary folate intake was not correlated with hypertension in both men and women (P for trend = 0.099 and 0.703, respectively). Plasma vitamin B12 was positively associated with hypertension only in women (P for trend = 0.027). Plasma Hcy level was positively linked with hypertension after controlling for covariates, including folate and vitamin B12