Body sway increases immediately after strabismus surgery.

The purposes of this study were to examine whether body sway is altered immediately after strabismus surgery in children and to find preoperative clinical factors associated with body sway. In a prospective study, body sway was measured on 1-3 days before surgery and on the third day after surgery; for the measurements, computerized static stabilometry was carried out on 28 consecutive patients with strabismus (age range: 3 to 12 years old; mean: 7.4) who underwent strabismus surgery under general anesthesia. The linear length of the sway path (cm), the linear length of the sway path in a particular unit of time (cm/second), and the area of the sway path (cm2), indicative of the extent of body sway, all increased significantly among a total of 28 patients in both conditions of the patient's eyes open and closed, as well as among those in a subgroup of 16 patients with exotropia, after they had undergone strabismus surgery (p &#60; 0.05, Wilcoxon signed ranks test). The center of pressure along the Y axis of orientation from the toe to the heel was found to deviate significantly toward the heel postoperatively, as compared with the preoperative center in the subgroup of 16 patients with exotropia (p &#60; 0.05). Before surgery, 15 patients with no stereoacuity exhibited a greater amount of body sway when their eyes were open than did 13 patients with measurable stereoacuity (p &#60; 0.05, Mann-Whitney U-test). In the subgroup of 16 patients with exotropia when their eyes open, 3 patients with abnormal head posture exhibited more extensive body sway than did 13 patients without abnormal head posture (p &#60; 0.05). Body sway was found to significantly increase immediately after strabismus surgery in children with strabismus. Stereoacuity and abnormal head posture are 2 clinical factors associated with preoperative postural instability.</p

Weight Reduction by Effective Protocol of Diet and Exercise

Background: Metabolic syndrome (Met-S) and Locomotive syndrome (Loc-S) have been in focus for years. Authors have reduced weight of patients with Met-S and Loc-S by exercise and Low Carbohydrate Diet (LCD). Moreover, we continued clinical research and enlightening activity about LCD through Japan LCD Promoting Association (JLCDPA). Intervention Program: Enrolled subjects were obese patients with 715 men and 2058 women with 62.2 ± 12.1 years. They attended the intervention of weight reduction program by LCD and exercise. The advisers were registered dietitian nutritionists (RDNs) and physical/exercise therapists, and they regularly interviewed the cases for 6-12 months. LCD included 33% of carbohydrate, and exercise included aerobic and anaerobic exercises with 10 kinds of machines. Results and Discussion: The pre-weight vs post-weight is 63.7 ± 11.6 kg vs 59.4±10.8 kg in average, and 61.8 kg vs 57.5 kg in median. Further, quartiles values on 25%-75% were 55.5 kg-69.9 kg vs 51.5 kg-65.3 kg, respectively. The weight reduction was 6.6% in average, and 2.6%-9.8% in quartiles 25%-75%. The distribution shape of both pre- and post-weight in the figure showed slight shift to left direction by 4.3 kg in average. These results suggest that combined therapy would be successful in the presence of advisers, and that data would become basal data for future research

Effective Nutritional Guidance for Obesity by Low Carbohydrate Diet (LCD)

Background: Authors have continued treating patients with obesity and metabolic syndrome by application of Low Carbohydrate Diet (LCD). Furthermore, we have continued presenting various reports about nutrition and educational guidance and developing LCD medically and socially through the activity of Japan LCD Promoting Association (JLCDPA). Study Protocol: Subjects enrolled were 2773 patients with obesity who received nutritional guidance in our clinic. Methods include i) weight reduction program on the intervention of LCD and guidance by registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN), ii) LCD with 33% of carbohydrate, and iii) Practice of guidance including self-monitoring, lifestyle, motivation, determination for the goal, evaluation. Results and Discussion: Nutritional guidance has been carried out on a regular basis by three RDNs. Weight reduction was: 10% or more was observed in 666 (24.0%), and 5.0 - 9.9% was in 863 (31.2%). In other words, the reduction of 5.0% or more was 55.2%, and 3.0% or more was 71.4%. Our nutritional guidance has been made as a manual for weight reduction program. It includes various factors, such as Self-Regulation Empowerment, cognitive behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing. These results would become basal and reference data for future research in the field of weight reduction

Chromatographic formation of a triadic band of lithium in hydrated LTA zeolite: An investigation on lithium isotope separation effects by ion exchange

published online 12 April 2017Lithium concentrations [Li] and isotopic ratios [Li-7]/[Li-6] were measured for effluent fractions from a biphasic zeolite column. The biphasic state was ascribed to a mixture of hydrated Linde Type A (LTA) zeolites, [Li-0.008(NH4)(0.92)]A and [Li-0.33(NH4)(0.67)]A, which were formed by Li ion exchange from hydrated ammonium in the form (NH4)(12)[Al12Si12O48]center dot nH(2)O (NH(4)A). The biphasic Li band of the column was displaced by ion exchange with a solution of NH4NO3. A constant [Li] with a much lower level than the concentration of NHt(4)(_)(+) in the displacer (NH4NO3) was observed for the effluent from a short column. This constant lower level of [Li] was attributable to the biphasic state. On this [Li] plateau of the effluent, the level of [Li-7] shifted higher than the original isotopic composition of the Li feed, whereas Li-6 was concentrated on the biphasic zeolite solid. The accumulation of Li-6 in the zeolite proceeded by a mechanism of differential elution of Li-7 from the biphasic zeolite. For the long column experiment, a significant enrichment of Li-6 in the zeolite was observed, whereby a triadic band of Li was probably formed in the column. Two monophasic and a biphasic state were assigned. The biphasic band was deemed to push the monophasic bands forward, thereby enriching the monophasic bands with Li-7, while Li-6 accumulated at the end of the biphasic band. The trio structure of the Li band and isotopic discrimination in the band were analyzed. (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.ArticleMICROPOROUS AND MESOPOROUS MATERIALS. 248:115-121 (2017)journal articl

Compound Heterozygous Mutations in SLC30A2/ZnT2 Results in Low Milk Zinc Concentrations: A Novel Mechanism for Zinc Deficiency in a Breast-Fed Infant.

Zinc concentrations in breast milk are considerably higher than those of the maternal serum, to meet the infant's requirements for normal growth and development. Thus, effective mechanisms ensuring secretion of large amounts of zinc into the milk operate in mammary epithelial cells during lactation. ZnT2 was recently found to play an essential role in the secretion of zinc into milk. Heterozygous mutations of human ZnT2 (hZnT2), including H54R and G87R, in mothers result in low (>75% reduction) secretion of zinc into the breast milk, and infants fed on the milk develop transient neonatal zinc deficiency. We identified two novel missense mutations in the SLC30A2/ZnT2 gene in a Japanese mother with low milk zinc concentrations (>90% reduction) whose infant developed severe zinc deficiency; a T to C transition (c.454T>C) at exon 4, which substitutes a tryptophan residue with an arginine residue (W152R), and a C to T transition (c.887C>T) at exon 7, which substitutes a serine residue with a leucine residue (S296L). Biochemical characterization using zinc-sensitive DT40 cells indicated that the W152R mutation abolished the abilities to transport zinc and to form a dimer complex, indicating a loss-of-function mutation. The S296L mutation retained both abilities but was extremely destabilized. The two mutations were found on different alleles, indicating that the genotype of the mother with low milk zinc was compound heterozygous. These results show novel compound heterozygous mutations in the SLC30A2/ZnT2 gene causing zinc deficiency in a breast-fed infant

Flight Performance of the AKARI Cryogenic System

We describe the flight performance of the cryogenic system of the infrared astronomical satellite AKARI, which was successfully launched on 2006 February 21 (UT). AKARI carries a 68.5 cm telescope together with two focal plane instruments, Infrared Cameras (IRC) and Far Infrared Surveyor (FIS), all of which are cooled down to cryogenic temperature to achieve superior sensitivity. The AKARI cryogenic system is a unique hybrid system, which consists of cryogen (liquid helium) and mechanical coolers (2-stage Stirling coolers). With the help of the mechanical coolers, 179 L (26.0 kg) of super-fluid liquid helium can keep the instruments cryogenically cooled for more than 500 days. The on-orbit performance of the AKARI cryogenics is consistent with the design and pre-flight test, and the boil-off gas flow rate is as small as 0.32 mg/s. We observed the increase of the major axis of the AKARI orbit, which can be explained by the thrust due to thermal pressure of vented helium gas.Comment: 19 pages, 10 figures, and 6 tables. Accepted for publication in the AKARI special issue of the Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japa

Comparison of preliminary results from Airborne Aster Simulator (AAS) with TIMS data

The Japanese Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection radiometer (ASTER), being developed for a NASA EOS-A satellite, will have 3 VNIR, 6 SWIR, and 5 TIR (8-12 micron) bands. An Airborne ASTER Simulator (AAS) was developed for Japan Resources Observation System Organization (JAROS) by the Geophysical Environmental Research Group (GER) Corp. to research surface temperature and emission features in the MWIR/TIR, to simulate ASTER's TIR bands, and to study further possibility of MWIR/TIR bands. ASTER Simulator has 1 VNIR, 3 MWIR (3-5 microns), and 20 (currently 24) TIR bands. Data was collected over 3 sites - Cuprite, Nevada; Long Valley/Mono Lake, California; and Death Valley, California - with simultaneous ground truth measurements. Preliminary data collected by AAS for Cuprite, Nevada is presented and AAS data is compared with Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) data