Study on Mechanism of Caisson Type Sea Wall Movement During Earthquakes

Model vibration tests under gravity and centrifuge model vibration tests in 50G were performed to investigate the behavior of caisson type sea mill with reclaimed ground below and behind the caisson. In the tests, sliding of caisson occurred only during excitation, which indicates that it is impossible to predict the displacement of caisson and the deformation of back-fill ground without taking account of both inertia force of caisson and dynamic earth pressure. As for the dynamic earth pressure acts on the caisson, it was found that when input acceleration is small, the dynamic earth pressure seems to restrain the movement of caisson and the excess pore water pressure hardly occurs. On the other hand, when input acceleration is large enough to cause liquefaction, the dynamic earth pressure seems to promotes the movement of caisson

Hippocampal CA1/subiculum-prefrontal cortical pathways induce plastic changes of nociceptive responses in cingulate and prelimbic areas

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Projections from hippocampal CA1-subiculum (CA1/SB) areas to the prefrontal cortex (PFC), which are involved in memory and learning processes, produce long term synaptic plasticity in PFC neurons. We examined modifying effects of these projections on nociceptive responses recorded in the prelimbic and cingulate areas of the PFC.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Extracellular unit discharges evoked by mechanical noxious stimulation delivered to the rat-tail and field potentials evoked by a single stimulus pulse delivered to CA1/SB were recorded in the PFC. High frequency stimulation (HFS, 100 Hz) delivered to CA1/SB, which produced long-term potentiation (LTP) of field potentials, induced long-term enhancement (LTE) of nociceptive responses in 78% of cases, while, conversely, in 22% responses decreased (long-term depression, LTD). These neurons were scattered throughout the cingulate and prelimbic areas. The results obtained for field potentials and nociceptive discharges suggest that CA1/SB-PFC pathways can produce heterosynaptic potentiation in PFC neurons. HFS had no effects on Fos expression in the cingulated cortex. Low frequency stimulation (LFS, 1 Hz, 600 bursts) delivered to the CA1/SB induced LTD of nociceptive discharges in all cases. After recovery from LTD, HFS delivered to CA1/SB had the opposite effect, inducing LTE of nociceptive responses in the same neuron. The bidirectional type of plasticity was evident in these nociceptive responses, as in the homosynaptic plasticity reported previously. Neurons inducing LTD are found mainly in the prelimbic area, in which Fos expression was also shown to be inhibited by LFS. The electrophysiological results closely paralleled those of immunostaining. Our results indicate that CA1/SB-PFC pathways inhibit excitatory pyramidal cell activities in prelimbic areas.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Pressure stimulation (300 g) applied to the rat-tail induced nociceptive responses in the cingulate and prelimbic areas of the PFC, which receives direct pathways from CA1/SB. HFS and LFS delivered to the CA1/SB induced long-term plasticity of nociceptive responses. Thus, CA1/SB-PFC projections modulate the nociceptive responses of PFC neurons.</p

Bezold’s abscess in a diabetic patient without significant clinical symptoms

A 52-year-old Japanese man with a history of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) presented with mild dizziness. On admission, the physical examination only revealed tachycardia and right sided cervical lymphadenopathy. On the fifth day of admission, his mental status slightly worsened. Urgent Computed Tomography (CT) of the head and neck revealed multiple abscesses spreading from the right temporal bone to the right sternocleidomastoid muscle. Bezold’s abscess was diagnosed. Streptococcus pneumoniae was isolated from middle ear fluid and blood cultures.Bezold’s abscess has rarely been described in the era of antimicrobial therapy. However this abscess can still occur in patients without any typical severe symptoms. Repeated history taking and thorough physical examination can help detect Bezold’s abscess

Relationship between Sedentary Behavior and Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients on Chronic Hemodialysis

We explored the relationship between sedentary behavior and the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients on chronic hemodialysis. A total of 60 outpatients, aged 71.1±12.0 years, were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Sedentary behavior was measured using a tri-accelerometer and HRQOL was evaluated by the Euro-QOL questionnaire (EQ-5D). The relationship between the patients’ sedentary behavior and HRQOL was evaluated by simple and multiple correlation analyses. The relative sedentary behavior (%) for total days was 73.7±12.9% and the EQ-5D scores were 0.688±0.233. Relative sedentary behavior (%) was negatively correlated with EQ-5D scores for total days, hemodialysis days and non-hemodialysis days. The relative light-intensity physical activity (LPA) (%) and relative moderately vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) (%) were correlated with EQ-5D scores. Multiple regression showed that the relative sedentary behavior (%) had a clinical impact on EQ-5D scores after adjusting for confounding factors for total, hemodialysis and non-hemodialysis days. Sedentary behavior is closely linked to HRQOL, and reducing sedentary behavior may be beneficial to improve the HRQOL of patients on chronic hemodialysis

Peculiar Distribution of Tumorous Xanthomas in an Adult Case of Erdheim-Chester Disease Complicated by Atopic Dermatitis

Erdheim-Chester disease is a rare non-Langerhans form of histiocytosis with multiple organ involvement. Approximately 20% of patients have xanthoma-like lesions, usually on the eyelids. We report a case of Erdheim-Chester disease in a 32-year-old male who showed peculiar xanthomatous skin lesions and also had atopic dermatitis. His skin manifestations included ring-like yellowish tumors on his periorbital regions, rope necklace-like tumors on his neck, and spindle-shaped tumors on his right preauricular region and cubital fossas. He also had exophthalmos and diabetes insipidus. Chronic eczematous lesions were present on the flexor aspect of his extremities, and his serum eosinophil numbers and immunoglobulin E levels were elevated. A histological examination of his right neck tumor showed foamy macrophages and touton-type giant cells, which were positive for CD68 and CD163 and negative for S-100 and CD1a. We suggest that the complication of atopic dermatitis may have contributed to the uncommon clinical features in this case

Development of a TDEM Data Acquisition System Based on a SQUID Magnetometer for Mineral Exploration

Summary We report on the research and development of a TDEM data acquisition system (SQUITEM) by JOGMEC using a highly sensitive high-temperature superconductor (HTS) SQUID vector magnetometer cooled by liquid nitrogen, which is suitable for mineral exploration. JOGMEC has achieved stable long-term operation of all three channels during field tests. SQUITEM meets high requirements for slew rate (6.8mT/s), dynamic range (100dB) and bandwidth (DC -100kHz). It offers deeper penetration of depth than the induction coil system because it can record the step response that decreases with time slower than the impulse response of the induction coil system. SQUITEM also performs horizontal gradient observations that can provide much better resolution of shallow conductive targets than conventional EM field component observations. We have obtained good reproducibility of SQUID data and correlation between the output signals of the reference induction coils and the derivatives of the SQUID signals in TDEM field tests

Associations between Japanese calligraphy practice and sleep quality in community-dwelling older adults: A cross-sectional Study

Background: Sleep disturbances, such as insomnia, are common among the elderly population and have been associated with negative health outcomes. Japanese calligraphy is a traditional art practice previously associated with various health benefits, such as stress reduction and improved cognitive function; however, its association with sleep quality has not been fully explored.// Methods: This cross-sectional study included 21,207 subjects with basic attributes, health status, depressive symptoms, artistic practices, and sleep habits. Individuals who satisfied the chronic insomnia criteria were categorized into the following subtypes: sleep onset latency (SOL) insomnia, early morning awakening (EMA) insomnia, and wake after sleep offset (WASF) insomnia. The t-test, chi-square test, and logistic regression analysis were used to determine the association between Japanese calligraphy practice and sleep quality.// Results: In this study, 17,597 elderly Japanese individuals were included, among whom 13.7 % practiced Japanese calligraphy. Regarding sleep characteristics, 32.0 % had chronic insomnia, 13.1 % had SOL insomnia, 9.1 % had EMA insomnia, and 14.2 % had WASF insomnia. Japanese calligraphy practice was associated with lower rates of chronic insomnia (odds ratio [OR] = 0.85, 95 % confidence interval (CI) = 0.76–0.95), including SOL insomnia (OR = 0.84, 95 % CI = 0.71–0.98), and EMA insomnia (OR = 0.80, 95 % CI = 0.66–0.97) but had no significant association with WASF insomnia.// Conclusions: This study suggests that Japanese calligraphy practice is associated with lower odds of insomnia, particularly SOL and EMA insomnia. Calligraphy may be an effective nonpharmacological intervention for insomnia and poor sleep quality among elderly Japanese individuals